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A
M5<^^5{^ COUX'I^Y, jViii^i^e^^oa.
FROM ITS FIRST SETTLEMENT
TO
JULY 4th, 1S76.
BY A. C.SMITH,
PRESIDENT OF THE BAR
AND OLD settler's ASSOCIATIONS FOR
SAID COUNTY.
WITH AN ACCURATE 'maP BY
HENRY L. SMITH.
LITCHFIELD, MINN.
BELFOY & JOUBERT,
PUBLISHERS.
1S77.
PREFACE.
or manuscript, be filed iu the office of the Librarian
of Congress, to the intent that a complete record
may thus be obtained of the progress of our institu-
tions duringf the first century of their existence.
And whereas, It is deemed proper that such rec-
commendation be brought to the notice and knowl-
edge of the peojDle of the United States —
Now, therefore, I, Ulysses S. Grant, President
of the United States, do hereby declare and make
known the same, in the hope that the object of the
resolution inay meet the approval of the people of
the United States, and that proper steps may be
taken to carry the same into effect.
Given under my hand at the city of Washington
this 35th day of May, in the year of our Lord
1S76, and of the Independence of the United
States, the looth.
U. S. GRANT.
By the President,
HAMILTON FISH,
Secretary of State.
CHAPTER I.
The region known as the " Big Prairie '" west of
the •' Big Woods " has been known to white set-
tlers but 2 1 years, and yet the twilight of uncer-
tainty has already thrown its shadows, and the
night of forgetfulness seems about to descend and
forever obscure many little incidents which, al-
though in detail seem of little consequence, vet all
go to make up a readable history of anv commu-
nity.
The Centennial year of our great Republic
seems to open up an opportunity, which the Pres-
ident of the United States recommended to our
people to improve and place in permanent shape for
preservation, the historical data of the various
counties and towns of the Republic.
2 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
In a little while the venerable gentlemen who
composed our first settlers will all be gathered to
their fathers — "their children engrossed by the emp-
" ty pleasures or insignificant transactions of the
'• present age (or in the greedy pursuit of the
"almighty dollar.) will neglect to treasure up the
" recollections of the past and posterity will search
" in vain for memorials of the days of the Patri-
"archs" (Knickerbocker's History of New York.)
Our history will be but a shadow, and the names
of Ripley, Hall, Whitney, DeCoster, Campbell,
Fitzgerald, Weymer, Salisbury, Dougherty, Atkin-
son, VanNess, Mitchell, Dorman, Taylor, Evans,
Skinner, Jewett, Kennedy, Stevens, Harvey, Pi-
per, Caswell, Angier, Willis, Dart, Whitcomb,
King, Greenleaf, Branham. Fitch, Ball, Hoyt, Gris-
wold, Grayson, Stanton, Robson, Richards,
Gorton, Wakefield, Heath, Warren, Willie, Kruger,
Ralston, Schultz and a score of others will soon
be enveloped in doubt and fi.ction, like those of
" Romulus and Remus of Charlemagne. "
Prior to 1855 the country now embraced within
the boundaries of Meeker and Kandiyohi counties,
in the State of Minnesota, was occupied by those
denizens of the forest known as the Sioux Indians.
This is their old stamping ground. The Mississippi
River was the dividing line between the Sioux and
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 3
Chippewas, and for centuries they are said to have
nursed a deadly feud. The former heroes of this
territory, the Sioux, were and still are, perhaps
among the most powerful of the Indian tribes in
the northwest. These, like all other ti'ibes are
gradually losing their prestige and compelled to
leave their reservations granted at some prior pe-
riod, in apparent good faith. Their fate is inevita-
ble. The only practical lav/ of what we call
civilization is, that the inferior in prowess, yield to
the superior race. The doctrine is cruel and inhu-
man, not to say " savage, " but unavoidable and im-
perative. Crowd the Indian to the wall — wait a
time for further decimation, then drive them into
still narrower limits and so on, till the Indian canoe
with its solitary occupant, disappears toward the
setting sun, and is finally lost to sight and sense,
and the life of one race, whose glory was to hunt
and fish, gives place to another more powerful,
but with as little regard to moral and intellectual
attainment except so far as it is enforced by law
falsely denominated the law of civilization. Sta-
tistics of the Indian war in Meeker county alone
will justify what we say. The course and policy
of the United States toward the Indian tribes, has
ever resulted in peculation to the operators and
death to the Indian, with no more prospect of civil-
4 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
ization or christianization to-day, than one hundred
vears ago. Government might quite as well en-
force the practice of the '' Oneida Institute " on
the American people, as to drive Christianity or
civilization into the Indian in the manner it has
sought to do for more than a century past.
The w^ar-like Sioux — driven to the Rocky Moun-
tains, are compelled to make their last fight (and
no insignificant one at that,) for tribal existence. —
In just one hundred years after the Declaration of
our National Independence, the Government is
engaged in the expensive, perplexing and perilous
effort to drive the last nail in the coffin of Ameri-
can Pagan existence. It will ultimately succeed
Init at what cost time alone can determine.
We are besfinninsf to realize the enormous con-
tract we are pledged to fill. The strength, as well
as the bravery of the Sioux, has been greatly mis-
represented. They can certainly bring into the
field 30,000 warriors, and twice as many troops will
be required to thoroughly and quickly subdue
them. With homes in the wilderness of the moun-
tains and forests, strange to say they are better
mounted [for this country and purpose than the
United States' Army backed with 500 millions of
annual revenue and 40 millions of people. They
are equally well armed and superior shots. Finally,
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 5
from th<i very nature of their individual style of
fighting-, they are magnificent skirmishers — the best
in the world; and necessarily the deployed line
must be most frequently used in Indian vi^arfare.
The fall of the chivalric Custer and his brave
command, will be but a drop in the bucket of the
sacrifice of human life and treasure.
To understand the extent of the Indian war the
Government has upon its hands, it is necessary to
have a correct knowledge of the position and pow-
er of the hostile .Sioux and their allies. In one of
the late reports of the Commissioner of Indian af-
fairs the location of the different agencies is giv-
en, with the number and condition of the Indians
on each reservation. The entire Indian population
of the United States, exclusive of Alaska, is esti-
mated at 295,084. In Dakota, Montana and Wyo-
ming, there are nearly 70,000, divided as follows:
DAKOTA AGENCIES.
Men. Women. Total.
Sisseton Agency (Sioux) : : 682 c;82 1,264
Devil's Lake (Sioux) : : : : 434 586 1.020
Grand River (Sioux) : : : 6,269
Cheyenne River (Sioux) : : : 6,000
Upper Missouri (Sioux) : : 1,600 1,395 2,995
Fort Berthold (Gros Ventres,
jMandan and Arickarees) : : 901 1,202 2,103
Yankton (Sioux) : : : : : i?947
Ponca : ::::::: 383 355 738
Whetstone (Sioux) : : : : 2,350 2,650 5,000
6 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTX.
Flandreau special (Sioux) : : : roo
MONTANA.
Blackfeet Agency (Blackfeet, Bloods and
Piegans) : ::::::::: 7.S00
Milk River Agency (Sioux) : : : : : 10,62:^
At other agencies and wandering : : : : 14,000
WYOMING.
Red Cloud Agency (Sioux and Cheyennes) 9,177
Total number in hostile country : : 68,638
According to the estimates given in the same
report, about sixty per cent, are women; this gives
27,000 warriors within the Indian Territory, which,
considering the number of bands that have never
settled at any of the reservations, is a low estimate
of their strength. According to the same calcula-
tion the Sioux and Cheyennes, now openly at war
would be able to bring nearly 22,000 men into the
field. From all accounts received from the seat of
war, one fact seems clear, and it is that the estimate
made as to the number of Indians actually on the
war path and operating against the troops is below
the real number.
Had the Indians been compelled, at an early day
to adopt agriculture and stock raising for the chase
— individualization of their property— submission to
territorial government as wards of the nation —
the sale of intoxicating drinks visited with the
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 7
penitentiary,-had they at the same time been furnish
with scliools and honest missionaries, the result
might have been vastly different.
Strange that a philosophy so false should have
been pursued for a hundred years by the most en-
lightened nation on earth, until annihilation be-
comes absolutely necessary to close the scene.
When we were a boy, we caught a young gray
fox before his eyes were opened. We tamed him
to the playfulness of a kitten, — but as he grew up
a •' gray fox, " he, one morning, took our fingers
with the meat, and the result was — annihilation to
the fox. Such is Indian history. Moral suasion is
useless — there are hardly exceptions enough to es-
tablish the rule.
CHAPTER II.
On the old Government map of 1842 accompa-
n}ing the official report of J. N. Nicollet and J. C.
Fremont, of astronomical and barometrical obser-
vations and surveys of the hydrographical basin
of the Mississippi during the year 1S36, to and in-
cluding 1840, and long before the territory now
composing Minnesota was christened, and before
St. Paul was dubbed " Pigs Eye, " this territory
was appropriated to and known and divided up
as resei"vations for different sub-Indian bands.
The portion south of Fort Snelling and east of
8 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
" Mankasa " (Mankato) was known as War-pe-
ku-te country. All west of Mankato River, and
southwest of the Upper " Minnesotah, " was
known as the War-pe-ton and Sisseton country.
The whole classed as Undine (or Spiritual) region;
while the entire country west of St. Anthony, and
north of the " Minnesotah " was known as the
M-de-wa-kan-ton country, a little west of the cen-
ter of which, in latitude 45, and longitude 95, Nic-
ollet retained as the most beautiful lakes in Min-
nesota, the romantic Indian name of Kan-di-yo-hi.
The terms St. Anthony, Fort Snelling, Manka-
sa, Le Sueur, Lac qui Parle, St. Peter, Kandiyohi
and Blue Earth, all find a location on NicoUefs old
map. The Coteau du Greene Bois, ranging
north-west and south-east throug-h the centre of
the State, constitutes the height of land from which
streams flow in all directions. Small streams take
their rise in Kandiyohi county and flow in all di-
rections, the lakes being near the height of land,
and are situate about 1,200 feet above the level of
the sea.
Meeker and Kandiyohi counties unquestionably
constitute the Garden of the State, and few will
be the circling years, ere these counties will teem
with the richest gifts of Ceres and be dense!}- fill-
ed with a thriving and enterprising people.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 9
dwellings will adorn the hillsides and peep from
the numerous groves surrounding sparkling lakes
and en-trance the beholder as he gazes on the fairy
scene outspread before him.
In 1S75, Meeker county alone sent her offering
to " those who hunger for bread " to the tune of
six hundi-ed thousand bushels of wheat, and in less
than five years more, Meeker and Kandiyohi
counties will be fully able to feed the entire State.
In the sunimer of 1855, John W. Huy and Ben.
Brown poled a canoe up the Crow or Hassan
River in search of pine timber as far as the j^i'es-
ent site of Forest City, and made a hasty explora-
tion of the country. D. M. Hanson, Thomas H.
Skinner, Fred Schultz and Dr. Riplev arrived at
the site of Forest City about the same time, via
Glencoe.
The following spring the countv of Meeker was
organized on paper — County Commissioners, D.
M. Hanson, Dr. Frederick Noah Ripley and J.
W. Huy; Register of Deeds, Milton G. Moore;
Sheriff, Abijah Bemis.
In March, 1856, Thomas H. Skinner and John
W. Huy took possession of the town-site of Forest
City, and subsequentlv had the same surveyed and
platted.
The followingr are the names of the several
lO HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
towns in this county, with their Congressional
designations and derivations:
NAMES OF FIRST SETTLERS, ETC.
(ii8 — 29 means Township 118, north of the
base Hne, and 29 west of the fifth principal
meridian, according to the United States survey,
and so of the other towns hereinafter mentioned):
118 — 29 — CoUinwood; so named by the first
settlers who came from CoUinwood, Canada. For
a few years prior to its actual settlement it was
known as New Virginia. The first permanent
settlements were made in May, 1866, by Oliver
Rasnick, Jacob Hutchins, Thomas Hutchins,
Henry Fuller and Geoi'ge Fuller. Town organ-
ized May 8, 1866.
O. Rasnick was the first Justice of the Peace.
The first death in the town was a child of E. K.
Counts.
First couple were married in 1867, John Taylor
to Miss Elizabeth Hutchins, and about the same
time, Alex. Ramsey to Miss Margaret Hutchins.
118 — 30 — Ellsworth; named at the suggestion of
Jesse V. Branham, jr., after the unfortunate Col.
Ellsworth whose tragic end occurred at Alexandria
during the war of the rebellion, first settled in
1856, by Dr. V. P. Kennedy, T. R. Webb and Dr.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. II
Russel Whiteman. Kennedy came in June and
Webb in July.
The first child born to Dr. Whiteman the fol-
lowing year. The second were twins to Wm. H.
Greenleaf, June, i860 — both dead.
The second death was a man by the name of
Halstead, in 1S63. The village of Greenleaf is
embraced in this township and was founded in
1858, by W. H. Greenleaf, Dana E. King and
Bennet M. and Judson A. Brink.
First school house built in 1S59; first teacher,
Miss Lydia Angler. First and only lawyer, Mark
Warren. Rev. J. C. Whitney preached the first
sermon at Greenleaf, (Presbyterian). There is one
Indian Mound in the Township which has not
been opened. This town was originally attached
to Rice Citv in 1S5S. — organized as a separate
township September i, 1S68. This township was
not exempt from incidents of the Indian war in
1S63.
Two weeks after the attack on Hutchinson,
Caleb Sanborn having been killed at Cedar Lake
the day before, a small party, consisting of Lewis
Harrington, Frank Jewett, T. R. Webb, Dave
Hern, Nath. Pierce, Daniel Cross and Silas Greene
'came out from Hutchinson for the remains of
Sanborn. When north of Cedar Lake woods,
12 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
three guns were simultaneously fired by unknown
hands, and Cross fell mortally wounded. Five of
the party, less Webb, sprang into the double wagon
and made their escape round the lake. Webb took
to a small boat on the lake and paddled for Cedar
Island where he was compelled to spend the
night. The Indians lined the lake shore during
Webb's retreat, but not till after he had reached a
safe distance did he turn to the red skins and place
his thumb to his nose — thus inviting them to come
where he was if they wanted him.
The next morning Webb returned to Hutchinson..
and as he approached town, met some fifty persons
coming out to look up him and Cross.
This party recovered the remains of both San-
born and Cross and took them to Hutchinson. It
was afterward ascertained that there were thirteen
Indians in the skirmish.
ii8 — 31 — Greenleaf; named after Hon. Wm. H
Greenleaf, who first commenced improvements by
the erection of a mill dam on the site of the
village of that name, and the subsequent erection
of a flour and saw mill. The first settlers of this
Congressional Township were three brothers Wm.,
Herman and Charles Kruger, in the s^^ring of
1857, originally attached to the town of Ness —
organized as town of Greenleaf, August 27, 1S59,
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 13
including 118 — 39, 30 and 31, except sections i to
6 inclusive.
When we first saw^ Wm. H. Greenleaf, he was
standing up to his knees in the mud in the outlet
of "Lake Willie," artistically laying up the sods
with his hands, in a fruitless endeavor to prevent
water from running down hill ! We are glad to
say that he has had far better luck at other business
since.
Lake Willie was named after U. S. Willie, Esq.,
a young lawyer who lived a year or two at Forest
City, and died there.
Two gentlemen by the name of Orcutt and
Pratt effected a settlement in this town in 1856, on
land now owned by Vincent Coombs. They
plowed about 3 acres, and while at dinner one day
the Indians killed one of their oxen, which broke
up their team, and becoming disheartened deserted
their claims and went to Forest City where they
remained till fall when they left the country.
Branham and Whitcomb settled in 1857 and the
McGannons in 1858.
118 — 33 — Danielson, originally part of Acton,
was organized distinctively March i3th, 1872, and
named after Nels Danielson, who settled in this
town in 1861, where he continued to reside till
his death in 1870. His family still reside there.
14 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Noah White, Esq., first settled in this town in 1857
but abandoned it in 1858, removing to Kandiyohi
county where he has ever since resided and
still resides. Noah, was the political " Moses " of
Kandiyohi 'county for about 16 years. In long
years gone by, when the Republican party wanted
to concentrate public sentiment and obtain a full
delegation from Kandiyohi county in State and
District conventions, they had but to look up Noah
White and the thing was fixed.
The native mosquitoes and fleas of Kandiyohi
county will be long and pleasingly remembered by
various politicians of Hennepin county during the
past decade.
Having occasion to spend a beautiful moon-
light Autumn night on one of these occasions,
watching the Republican politicians, we enjoyed
a nights rest on the soft side of a log with the bark
on and an oak chip for a pillow, and as the silent
watches of the night drove sleep from our eye lid,
our position called to mind the words of a great
philosopher:
" Life is an inconceivably beautiful thing, so
soon as we reach that point whence we can look
out upon it through a clear conscience and a
character well buffeted by experience. The one
diffuses a pure, heavenly light over all the strange
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
15
and complex mass which meets the eye, the other
tones down our enthusiasm without destroying the
vigor. "
119 — 39 — Swan Lake, was named after a lake
of that name in this township — originally part of
Kingston. The first settlers were men by the
name of Ay res and Richardson in 1856, from
Mexico, N. Y. They were surveyors. They left
in 1862 and the Indians soon burned their cabin.
After the Indian war, Isaac N. and A. W.
Russel, were the first settlers in 1S64 or 5, and
were followed soon after by a colony from
Kentuck3^
The village of Dassel is embraced in this town,
and was platted and settled in the spring or
summer of 1S69, on the completion of the St.
Paul and Pacific Rail Road to that place. It was
organized as a separate town September 4, 1S66,
and the name changed to " Dassel, " after a railroad
gentleman of that name. The old farm or claim
of Ayres and Richardson was sold and conveyed
about 6 or 7 years ago to Mr. Harlow Ames.
118 — 30 — Darwin, (organized April 5, 1S58,)
takes its name from a man of the 19th century
who was so unfortunate as to own stock or bonds
of the St. Paul & Pacific Railroad Co., and not
from the originator of the Darwin-ian theory.
l6 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
that " all the world and the rest of mankind "'
sprang originally from the monkey.
Until the railroad was built this town was
known as "Rice City," named by a partv of
surveyors from Dubuque, who made claims on
paper, and who laid out and platted a townsite
which they named " Rice City, " in honor of Hon
Edmund Rice, of St. Paul. John Curran was one
of the first settlers of this town.
119 — 31 — Litchfield, is named after another
unfortunate stockholder of the Railroad company,
who, it appears, resides in the rural village of
London, England. The Congressional township
was originally called " Ripley " from the lake of
that name in said town, and the lake was named
from the fact that near its banks one Dr. Riplev
was frozen to death in the winter of 1855-6, and
his remains found and buried in the spring of
1S56. (See chapter,Dr. Frederick N. Ripley.)
Two or three years later the name was changed
to " Ness " in honor of Ole Halverson Ness, Esq.
This name was taken from the name of the elec-
tion or church district of Norway, whence came
the first settlers of the town in July, 1856.
Ole Halverson, of Ness, now called Ole H.
Ness, Henry Halverson, Ole Halverson, of
Thon, now called Ole H. Thon, Nels C. Hanson
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I^
Guilder Olson and Amos Nelson, of Fosen, now-
called Amos N. Fosen, were the first settlers,
three of them had families. They settled on their
present farms in July, 1S56. Amos N. Fosen, our
present worthy County Treasurer, first moved into
the town of Acton, hut soon found that town
would not hold him for scarcity of land, and he
therefore finished his claim and settlement in the
town of Ness — he worked the first winter for Ole
H. Ness, at splittincr rails, and was the first known
rail splitter in the county. Henry Halverson huilt
the first house — Ole H. Ness huilt the first barn
and lived in it till the next season.
Ole T. Halverson was the first child born in the
town, to Flenry Halverson.
Lutheran Church organized in 185S, but no
building erected till Litchfield was founded in 1869.
The first school district was organized in 1861
and school house built. The first teacher was John
Blackwell.
The Jones family (so called) were the first five
persons massacred in the Indian war, and were
buried in this town in one broad grave in the cem-
etery of the Lutheran Church.
There are a number of small mounds similatinor
Indian mounds in this town, mostly in the timber,
and of evidently great age. None have ever been
iS HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
explored. In 1869 the town of Litchfield was platted
and settled, and the county seat was removed from
Forest City to Litchfield by a vote of the people
in the fall of 1S69. As before remarked, the town
and village of Litchfield took their present name
in honor of a Mr. Litchfield, of England. Mrs.
Litchfield is said to have given $2,000 to the erec-
tion of the Episcopal church, parish school and
parsonage at this point.
On the present town-site, Mr. Waller's shanty
was the first structure erected, and the " Litchfield
House " the first building of any size. These build-
ings, however, were not on the original town-site.
The first building on the town-site proper, was
thatofTruls Nelson, on the opposite corner north
of the Town Hall, and now occupied by John Pet-
erson. B. F. Pixley's house was the second. Heard
& Ward's store was the third. H. B. Johnson's and
Joseph James' buildings next, and so on.
Mrs. Marietta, wife of C. O. Porter, was the first
woman on the town-site to reside. — Mrs. M. L. Pix-
ley was the second. These ladies arrived in Litch-
field respectively August 26th and 27th, 1869.
There are now five church edifices here, to- wit:
Presbyterian, Episcopal, Methodist, Christian or
Campbellite and Swedish Methodist; also a union
school house, costing three or four thousand
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTX. IQ
dollars, and a Town and Masonic Hall,26x72 feet,
costing, when finished, about four thousand
dollars. Present population, twelve hund-
red.
LAWYERS.
A. C. Smith, F. Belfoy, Chas. H. Strobeck, S
A. Plumley, E. A. Camp1)ell, N. C. Martin and L.
C. Spooner.
PHYSICIANS.
Drs. V. P. Kennedy, F. E. Bissell, and L. P.
Foster.
CLERGY.
Rev. Messrs. T. G. Crump, Episcopal; J. S.
Sherill, Presbyterian; I. H. Riddick, Methodist
and F. A. Grant, Christian. (See Chapter on
Churches.)
Litchfield boasts a steam flour mill of 7 run of
buhrs, owned by R. S. Hershey & Co.
119 — 32 — Acton was organized April. 1S58, and
originally embraced iiS — 32, and the south half
of 120 — 32. Acton takes its name from Acton,
Canada, where the Ritchie family came from
when they first settled in Acton, in 1857. In 1857
Robinson Jones, Howard Baker and mother and
Abram Kelley settled here. Capt. Robinson
and John Blackwell came in about the same time.
All except John Blackwell had formed an acquaint-
20 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
ance with each other in a lumber camp the previ-
ous winter, on the upper Mississippi. Of the old
settlers named, Abram Kelley alone remains.
The first child born in Acton was to Peter Ritch-
ie. Jones, Howard Baker and his mother were
three out of the five killed by the Indians, August
lyth, 1862, at the house of Howard Baker.
120 — 29 — Kingston ; was named by Geo.. A.
Nourse, Esq., a lawyer, then of St, Anthony, now
residing in Nevada. This town was organized
April 5, 1S58, aud embraced 119 — 29, 120 — 29 and
121 — 29.
Benjamin Dorman was the first man to turn the
sod in this town, while m the fall of 1857, Mr. A.
P. Whitney, Henry Averill and S. B. Hutchins
took possession of the town-site of Kingston, on
Crow River and commenced the erection of the
dam, where now stands the Kingston saw and flour
mill. Whitney is now in California, Averill has
gone to parts unknown, and Hutchins resides in
Wright County.
Some six or eight young men — the aristocracy
of Forest City — having heard of the arrival, and
not having seen a lady for three or four months,
joined in a "pleasure excursion " to Kingston, to
see Mrs. Fitzgerald. This Avas the first pleasure ex-
cursion that took place in Meeker County. On be-
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 21
ing introduced to Madam Fitzgerald, she proved
to be a very good, kind,straight-forward, plain-spo-
ken woman, who remarked that the " skeeters had
been av^-ful." Slightly elevating the crinoline, she
exhibited an instep swolen and distorted by mus-
quito bites, and assured the masculines present that
that was not an over-wrought picture of her entire
condition. The bojs returned to Forest City wis-
er and more reflective, if not better men.
In 1858 some flour had been stolen from Kings-
ton, and a search warrant was duly placed in Sher-
iff'Jewett's hands, with the view of finding the sto-
len property. Examining various houses with the
assistance of Deputy Sheriff' Maddox, they entered
the house of Madam Morris Powers. Fearing
the flour might be concealed In the cellar, the dep-
uty descended through a trap door, whereupon
Madam Powers stationed herself,wlth a tub of hot
suds at the trap door,arfd with a tin dipper obstruct-
ed the egress of Maddox, and he was not seen for
about an hour. Maddox soon thereafter resigned
his office.
120 — 30 — Forest City received Its name at the
hands of Thomas H. Skinner, who entered the
town-site of the U. S. Government in February,
1858. The town had been settled two and a half
years previous, and among the first settlers were
23 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Wait H. Dart, David Mitchell, W. H. Vanness, T.
C. Jewett, John Whalen, Edward Campbell, Dud-
ley Taylor, John Flynn, T. H. Skinner, D.M. Han-
son, Dr. F. N. Ripley. R. Schultz, Chas Johnson.
J. W. Quick, Matt Standish, John W. Huy and oth-
ers.
The site of Forest City was originally intended
to have been made farther up the river,in the town
of Harvey, on the old Wigle claim (so called), now
owned by Mr. Driver, and was to have been called
by the Sioux name of Kar-i-shon or Krow.
This town was organized April 5th, 1858, em-
bracing the east half of 120 — 31 and 120 — 30.
Of the first settlers above named, Dart, Mitchell.
Vanness, Jewett, Campbell, Whalen, Schultz, and
Mrs. Dudley Taylor, with their families, alone re-
main.
The log house now owned oy Mr. John Heath,
was the first public house in the county, and was
kept by Mr. and Mrs. Dudley Taylor. Mr. Taylor
afterwards enlisted in the United States service —
became disabled by the falling ot the deck
of the steamer " Gladiator, " on the Tennessee
river, and subsequently died in the State of New
York, where he formerly lived.
D. M. Hanson, a fine young lawyer, and an es-
timable gentleman, with whom the writer was
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 23
quite well acquainted, died in Minneapolis soon af-
ter his return from Forest City, in the spring of
1856.
Dr. Ripley froze to death on the prairie seven
miles south of Forest City, in the winter of 1856,
and his remains were found in the spring, by Wm.
S. Chapman, now of California, and buried near
that beautiful lake adjoining Litchfield, which now
bears, and will forever bear, his name. — (See Chap-
ter, Dr. Frederick N. Ripley).
Thos.H. Skinner died at Milwaukee, August 20th
1863, ^^^ was buried at St. Albans, Maine ; aged
29 years. Up to the time of his death, he was
President of the Forest City Town Company.
John Whalen and John Flynn came through the
big woods in the spring of 1856, near Kingston,
fording the Crow River at that point with the wa-
ter shoulder deep. The river was swolen and the
banks full from heavy rains, and they found it a vast
deal easier to get into the river than to get out.
Whalen finally drew himself out by a root on the
bank, and Flynn was rescued by Whalen. They
brought their bread from St. Anthony, and after
selecting their claims, they started on their return
fortheir families. They had one small loaf of bread
two weeks old, and about the size of a ten-pound
cannon ball, and of somewhat similar appearance,
24 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
which was to last them to Monticello, and until it
was necessary to use it, they wrapped it in a hand-
kerchief and used it for a pillow. The first nig^ht
out, some person stole it, and ihey had to go
through the woods without eating. Staid at Mon-
ticello one night, and were charged $6 each for
supper, breakfast, and lodging on shavings. They
returned with their families, and reached their
claims Oct. 32, 1856.
120 — 31 — Harvey. This town was named in
honor of James Harvey, who settled in that town
in i860, and subsequently resided at Forest City
during the Indian war.
Harvey was first settled by John and Thomas
Dougherty in 1S56. They broke 25 acres of land
that summer. A man by the nameof McCue came
into the town about two weeks ahead of the Dough-
ertys, but soon left. This town was originally a
part of Forest City, but set off, and organized sep-
arately in 1867. There were no marriages or deaths
in this town till 1870. Dennis Dougherty and
Mary Finnegan were married in May 1S70. Ed.
Dolan, a child eight years old, died the same year.
Thomas Dougherty was the first Justice of the
Peace.
Mr. E. O. Britt was among the first settlers of
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 25
this town. His mother. Charity Britt, nee Tib-
betts, came with the family from Maine. She was
born in Litchfield, Maine, April 3d, 1773, and is
consequently now 103 years of age — the oldest
woman in the county, if not the state. She pre-
empted 160 acres of land.
The site of Foi'est City was first located within
this township, and was to have been called by the
Indian name of Kar-i-shon or Krow.
120 — 32 — Swede Grove, was first settled in 1S57
by N. E. Hanson, Nels Elofson, Hans Peterson,
Peter E. Lund, Nels Weylander, Andrew Peter-
son and John Rosencranz and a few others —
most, or all with families. The town was named
by N. E. Hanson and Nels Elofson, from the fact
that this town was settled by Swedes. This town
was originally a part of Acton — was organized by
itself March 15th, 186S. Nels Elofson was ap-
pointed Post-master in 1859.
121 — 30 — Forest Prairie — is situate north of For-
est City, in the big woods, and was named Forest
Prairie for the same reason that the boy named his
pony " Snow Ball " — because he was black as jet.
It was called Forest Prairie because there was not
a bit of prairie in the town. First settled in the
spring of 1866, by Merrit B. Case, C. T. Groot, J.
S. Reynolds, George Scrivner, ^.eorge Smith, Mr.
26 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Polk and by Stevens and Roach, mostly with fam-
ilies. Next year the town was pretty well settled
by the arrival of new-comers. This town was du-
ly organized June loth, 1S67. Mr. Stoors was the
first Post-master, in 1867.
121 — 31 — Manannah ; was organized as a town-
ship, April 5th, 1858, and originally embraced the
west half of 120 — 31, 120 — 32, 121 — 31, and 121 —
32-
On the 15th of November, 1855, Chris Davis,
Green Sykes, Ziba Caswell and Nathan C. Cas-
well left Monticello, Wright County in search of a
mill-site and farm-land, passing through the " big
woods, " so-called, and struck the prairie near the
present site of Darwin, thence north to what is now
Forest City, thence down Crow River about 10
miles, and thence on a straight shoot back to Mon-
ticello. Trying it again, on the loth day of De-
cember 1855. Ziba Caswell and N. C. Caswell
started for the big prairie, and emerged from the
woods near where Kingston now stands, thence up
stream past Forest City, (then a City of "Magnifi-
cent Distances, " no buildings obstructing the view)
Harvey, Manannah, Union Grove and Swede
Grove, thence returning, concluded to trade with
" Uncle Sam " for some claims at Manannah on
tick. Arrived at Monticello, December 24th, 1855.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 27
On this second trip, the only white men the}" met
on the prairie, were Thomas H. Skinner and D.
M. Hanson, who were in camp at Kar-i-shon.
In 1856, Alonzo, Ziba, Silas, Albert and N. C.
Caswell captured the town, and together with
James Nelson, Edward Brown, and A. D. Pierce
took up the claims around the old townsite, and
built the first shanties in Manannah, backing their
provisions from Monti cello. Ziba Caswell and one
J. W. Walker surveyed and named the town-site of
Manannah in December, 1856. The settlement
was increased the same fall by the addition of Car-
los Caswell, John Tower, Andrew Hamilton, and
Li!cy Ann Lobdell, nee Slater, (See Chapter, "A.
Wild Woman's History "). On the 4th of March,
18^7, the Caswells put up the first building of any
size, designed for a hotel. Prior to the organization
of the town, the County Commissioners appointed
N.C.Caswell Road Supervisor, April ■27th, 1857,
being: the first ofiice ever held in said town. The
first prairie broken by the Caswells, May 4111,1857.
First marriage was James Nelson and Elizabeth
A. Caswell, by E. B. Kingsley, J. P., in the spring
of 1857. First child born was Hattie Estella Kim-
ball. First death was Samuel Clvde.
In 1857 J. W. Walker built a saw mill on Crow
River at this point, which was carried off by the
28 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
freshet in 1S59, and was never rebuilt. Two or
three years since, Mr. N. C. Hines erected a fine
flour and saw mill, a mile or two below the old
site,and a fine village has sprang up in consequence-
A stockade was erected at the old town-site of
Manannah in 1863, to aid in the protection of the
settlements of that region, and a few soldiers sta-
tioned there by Col. Ney-Smith, of Wisconsin, be-
ing a portion of his regiment. It was here, one
fine sun-shiny day of that year, that we greeted
Hon. M. J. Severance in his military blouse, sun-
ning himself on a log as high private. He was in
the line of his duty.
This town was a point of tragic interest during
the fall of 1862, connected with the Indian War,
an account of which will be found elsewhere in
this volume.
121 — 33 — Union Grove ; was first settled in 1S56
by Lyman Allen, Andrew Hamilton, and by two
other men by the names of Baker and Haywood.
Allen and Haywood returned to Massachusetts in
i860. Baker is dead. Mr. Allen named the town,
wherefore or for what is unknown. We have been
])romised a sketch of the early settlement and in-
cidents of this town, but have thus far failed to re-
ceive it. This town was duly organized April 18,
1S66.
HISTORY OP^ MEEKER COUNTY. 29
117 — 31 — Cedar Mills ; this town took its name
from Cedar Lake, situate in that locality, and the
lake received its christening at the hands of Nicol-
let and Fremont, from the fact of an island in the
lake covered with red cedar. It was hence desig-
nated on the old map as Ran-ti-tia-wita, the Indian
for '' Red Cedar Island Lake."
This town was first settled in 1856 by Daniel
Cross, who was killed by the Indians in 1862. The
widow and family of three children still reside on
the old claim.
In 1S57 R.J. Brodwell, O. S. Merriam, Philand-
er Ball, Geo. R. Jewett and a few others settled
here. Mr. Nichols built a flour mill at this point
in 1858, with three run of stone — capacity, 60 bar-
rels per day.
116 — 32 — Cosmos; was named by an eccentric
gentleman, an early settler by the name of Hoyt,
who was frozen to death four yeai's ago last win-
ter, in an effort to go on foot to the Minnesota Riv-
er.
Dr. Kennedy says the word " Cosmos " is Greek,
and the Dr. knows, and that it signifies " the uni-
verse. " The Dr. is an original Greek scholar,and
if he has deceived us, we shall never forgive him
— never. We think the Dr. is right, for the Greek
order of architecture pretty generally prevails in
3© HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
this township, mostly of the plain Doric, which
was invented hy the Greeks, and it was in this
very town that the rigor of the seasons obliged the
settlers to construct shelters from the inclemenc\
of the weather, and here they first learned to plant
trees on end and then lay others across to support
a covering. The bands which connected those
trees at top and bottom, first gave them a clear
idea of the base and capitol of pillars.
Mathews and Eddy were among the early sett-
lers, but it was not much settled till after the Indi-
an war. This town and Cedar Mills were voted
from McLeod county, and became legally attached
to Meeker County in 187 1.
This town is now settled up with a hardy, en-
terprising people.
CHAPTER III.
All history, except of wars, is usually made up
of little things, incidents, waifs floating on the
stream of time, seemingly of no account as they
pass, exciting, it may be, a smile, hardly worthy of
a record, and yet in the fitful passage of a century,
and the historian looks back for those little inci-
dents with an interest that would not surprise us,
could we realize a tithe of their importance, in the
estimation of those who shall come after us.
Had we a record of all the little historical re-
miniscences, as they transpired, connecting the
present with the past of ancient Jerusalem, we
would probably not be surprised and mortified at
so much of its present disgusting appearance of
squallorand misery, bodily, mentally and morally,
(30
32 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
as almost leads us to doubt the integrity of scrip-
ture, when we there read of its ancient splendor
and magnificence. A few centuries of history lost
to that ancient city, made up of little things per-
haps, has produced more skepticism in the world
than all the false doctrine that has ever been jDrac-
ticed since the christian era.
Waterloo and Austerlitz — so boldly emblazoned
on the page of history, were never of a tithe of the
importance, as the silent efforts of the people dur-
ing the last century to peacefully qualify themselves
and their children to maintain by education and
intelligence, the vital principles of self-govern-
ment.
In a former chapter, we gave the date of settle-
ment of each town in Meeker County, and the
names of a few of the earliest settlers. We now
propose a random account of circumstances and
incidents such as we think will not only interest
the readers at this day, but be of more material
value in the future. In this we are not confined
to civil and judicial histoi'y, for while we were con-
sidered as " afar oft'" on the frontier, carving or
trying to carve out a name and a future for our
county, we found a national war of gigantic pro-
portions in the South, and while congratulating
ourselves that men and monev were all that would
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 33
be expected of us, and that we were fortunateh'
far removed from bloody scenes, an Indian war of
savage ferocity suddenly burst over our heads,
and came near to our total extinguishment.
Between a depletion of men for the South, and
self-defence on the frontier, there were few in
Meeker County to indulge an idle hour.
The summer of 1S56, BenjamlfT Dorman com-
menced the fii"st farming operations, by breaking
^he prairie sod. Morris Powers was the first to
follow suit. Powers died the next season. Dor-
man " still lives. " Their farms were situate be-
tween Forest City and Kingston.
The county was named in honor of Hon. B. B.
Meeker, of St. Anthony — why or wherefore is
unknown, unless, indeed, the Italian climate of
the " Big Prairie, " the richness of her soil, and
the beauty of the surroundings, were found typi-
fied in the geniality of the Judge's temperament,
and the quiet, good-natured rotundity of his per-
son. Judge Meeker died at St. Anthony a couple
of years since.
The 4th of July, iS^6, was first celebrated west
or the big woods, at Forest City. On the 22nd
day of June, 1856, Rudolph Schultz, Chas. John-
son and Jas. W. Qiiick ]>acked a liberty-pole out
34 HISTORY OF MEEKE){ COUXTY.
of the woods and raised it in Forest City, prepar-
atory to the 4th. A small tin pan was well scoured
with muck, and nailed on the top for a ball, and
the stars and stripes were duly raised. . The flag
was made of white cotton furnished by T. C. Jew-
ett ; red flannel by Matt. Standish, and blue den-
ims by John W. Huy — at a loss to each, respec-
tively, of a "biled" shirt, one pair red flannel
drawers, and o%e pair of overalls. What took
place on the 4th of July, was never recorded.
The first child born fti the count}^ in July, 1856,
was Miss Sarah Jane — born in a camp wagon — to
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Dougherty. The next, and
first male child born, was Ole T. Halverson, to
Henry Halverson. Both childien still live in the
county.
The first death in the county was a young man
by the name of Frank Parsons, Nov. 12th, 1856,
aged 20 years. He was buried on the town-site of
Forest City.
The first marriage in the county was Joseph
Weymcr to Mary Dorman, in August, 1857, by
the Rev. John Robson. They " still live. '"
The first sermon preached was by Rev. John
Robson, (Methodist) Nov. 1S56. He was from
Boston, and in 1859 he returned to that city, and
died at Melrose, March 5th, 1867. He erected, and
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 35
operated the first saw mill at Forest City — it was
run by steam.
On the 33nd of March, 1858, A. C. Smith, Reg-
ister of the U. S. Land Office, and John D. Evans.
Receiver, arrived, with the archives of said office,
at Forest City, and with others to the number of a
baker's dozen, were feasted with fresh oysters in
the log cabin of his honor the President of the
Town Company, T. H. Skinner, and which w^as
demolished some years since, by the vandal hand^
of Mr. Mallory. who now^ owns the ground on
which it stood.
The arrival of the U. S. Land Office at Forest
City was considered an important era in the histo-
ry of the county, and gave quite an impetus to its
settlement.
Of the early settlers in the county, many of them
remain, while others have gone to parts unknown.
or paid the debt of nature. There are from 75 to
135 voters who now reside in the county who were
here prior to the commencement of the Indian
War.
The financial crisis of 1857 and '58 did not facili-
tate a very rapid growth to Meeker County. At
the commencement of the civil war, she had about
300 voters. No county in the State furnished
more men in proportion to its population, than
36
HISTORY OK MEEKER COUNTY.
Meeker — the first installment in 1861 and the sec-
ond in 1S62-3. Over 125 men from the county
found their way into the Union armies, many of
whom were not credited to the countv or State, as
they had previously removed therefrom, in conse-
quence of the Indian hostilities — none were ever
drafted — and Meeker County is yet credited with
six three-year men, or 18 years service in the next
WAR ! But three were known of the entire num-
ber, to have been killed in battle, viz :
Reuben Wait, Wellington S. Gates and William
Johnson — some 10 or 15 died in hospital.
The following is belie\ ed to be a very correct
list of volunteers from Meeker County, with the
number of their regiment in the State, so far as
known :
NAMES.
REG. &c.
NAMES.
REG. kc.
Angier, Albert
Third.
Kennedy, VP
Fifth
Allen, L. D
Fourth-
Atkinson, J B
Capt. Artil.
Lavi'rence, A C
Fourth
Luton, Henry
Cavalry
Bradshaw, J H
Third.
Little, G W P
Cavalry
Butler, Daniel
Fourth
Larson, Andrew
Cavalry
Brink J A
Scout
Fourth
Mixter, Horace
Baldwin. SD L
Sharp Shoot
Borjiusrode, R
Fifth
McCaun, Michael....
Fourth
Bennett, Wm P
Hatch Bat.
'McGraw. Daniel
Hatch Bat.
Branham, EF
Seconii
McGiaw, Cornelius..
Hatch Bat.
Branham, Wm
2d Cavalry
Murphy, James
Eighth
Mattson.Paul
Sixth
Campbell, Dim
Second
iMickelsoii, H
Cavalry
Campbell Wm M
Cavalry
Maybee, Chas
Hatch Bat.
(re-enlisted as Vet'n)
McGafly, Henry
Sharp Shoot
Campbell E A
Cavalry
(re-enlisted as Vet'n)
Second
Second
Nichols. Seth
Fourth
CI inton, H
Nelson, Andrew
Chapin Isaac
Gates \VS
Fourth
Oaks, 0
Second
HISTORY OF MEPJKER COUNTX.
37
Cas-well, William
Deiiry, Jiimes
Deloiig, Albert
DeCoster, F V ....
Dunn, James W.
Evans, Ed
Eastman, Rul'us
Fisher, Ja.sper
Fitzgerald, John
Flynn, Mif-hael
Fallon. Thomas
Fallon, John
Foster, William
Grayson, Thomas
Howe, Frank
Howe, Hfinry S
Hutchins, Samuel
Hall, Wm H
Hutchins, Charles
Hutchins, Moses
Hoyt, Azro Buck
Johnson, Lorain
Johnson, William
Jackson, Gilbert
Johnson, Chris
Koch, Wm
Koch, Maximilian...
Koch, Louis
Cavalry Oleson, A.
2d Cavalry
Sc< ut
4th, Ca)
Fourth
Brack'- Bat
First
2nd Cavalry
nd Cavalry
2ud Cavalry
Fourth
Fourth
Third
Hatch Bat.
Hatch Bat.
Hatch Bat
Cavalry
Fourth
Second
Second
iGth Wis.
Third
Cavalry
Second
Second
Cavalry
Cavalry
Heavy Artil
Page, Phillip...
Pal'e. Gecrge..
Pottle, Ben
Pea body, Chas.
Peterson, Ole .
Peterson, John.
Reef, Emanuel. ..
Rhodes, Dan
R'f!:, J(.s T
Rogers, Leverson .
Rogers, Jerome.. .
Sholes jr., Geo. S.
Stearii, Peter
Schnltz, Carl....
Sahsbnry, J B....
Slark, Ftli.x
Stinchiield, CH..
Taylor, Dudley.
Taylor, All)ert..
Taylor, Joel
Todd, Jerome...
Waite, Reuben
Walker, J W
Whitconib, Geo. C.
Whitney, Augustus.
Wigle,JolHi
Williariis, August us.
Willis. William
I Tenth
Sharp shoot
Cavalry Vet
Fifth
Hatch Bat.
Si.xth
Third
Hatch Bat.
Fourth
Second
Sharp Shoot
Cavalry
Second
Cavalry
5tli Cavalry
IHatch Bat.
Third
Captain
Fourth
Tliird
Fourth
Third
I Sharp Shoot
ICapt. Cava]
Fourth
1 1st Cavalry
Si.vth
Third
CHAPTER IV
The Indian War formed a tragical episode in the
history of Meeker County
About II o'clock A. M., of Sunday, the i7tli of
August. 1862, the first deliberate massacre of the
brutal Sioux outbreak, took place 13 miles west of
Forest City in the town of Acxox.
Six Indians came first to the house of Robinson
Jones, and thence to that of of Mr. Howard Baker,
where they deliberately shot five persons, viz :
Robinson Jones, Howard Baker, Mrs. Ann Baker.
Viranus Webster and Miss Clara D. Wilson, (the
last named, at Jones' house). This was the com-
mencement of that terrible Indian scourge, which
resulted in the massacre of about nine hundred
whites, on the frontier of Minnesota in the fall of
1862.
(3S)
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 39
The preliminary tragedy at Acton, was not the
result of a drunken riot — but was the commence-
ment of a premeditated design to extenninate the
whites from this region of country, although prob-
ably this early commencement, by an insignificant
band, was not a part of the programme of Little
Crow and other leaders. I allude to this, to correct
errors which appear to have already been manu-
factured into departmental history. The Secreta-
ry of War reported to Congress, and all the pre-
♦ tended histories yet written, craw fish to the fur
traders, and allege a drunken broil as the commence-
ment of the affair,and also make statements credited
to the reports of a child afterwards found in Jones'
house on the eve of the 17th, about 8 o'clock.
Mr. John Blackwell, a reliable citizen, now- de-
ceased, found a little grand child of Mrs. Ann Ba-
ker, 18 months old, on the floor in Jones' house
(the only one left or found in the house) and took it
away — this child was too young to talk and was
totally unconscious of its tragic surroundings.
It was lying upon the floor where it appeared to
have cried itself to sleep.
Whether the Indians considered the child too in-
significant to kill, or did not see it at all, cannot
be known, the latter supposition is probably cor-
rect.
so HISTORY OF MEEKER COIXTY.
One writer sa3'S that the child lay on the bed and
witnessed the scalping of his sister, but this is a
mistake. The bed had not been tumbled and no
other act done indicating that the Indians ever
went into the house, and the girl had not been
scalped or mutilated in any way but lav partlv up-
on her back in a pool of blood just wdiere she fell.
After Baker and Webster ceased to breathe, theii-
wives started for the house of Mr. John Blackwell.
their nearest neighbor, Mrs. Baker carrving in her ♦
arms an infant child preserved from the massacre.
When they reached Blackwell's they found no one
at home, and proceeded on to the next neighbor,
named Olson, a blacksmith, whom the Indians af-
terwards killed.
Late in the afternoon Blackwell, on horseback,
came riding leisurely home, and learned from Ole
H.Ness, Esq., whom he met on the prairie, the ter-
rible news, which he at first could not believe, but
Mr, Ness advised him to go to the house of Olson
where the women then were and learn the particu-
lars from them which he did, and learned from them
that their husbands were dead before they left the
house, and that two other persons, Robinson Jones
and Mrs. Baker (mother of Ho wai'd Baker) were
both shot, were both in great agony and evidently
dying; that Mrs. Baker was lying in the house and
HISTOKY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 41
Jones in the yard near the house; that the latter came
there from his own house but a short time before
where he had left the said niece and child.
The fate of those children was then problemat-
ical, fearing the worst, the Indians having gone in
that direction, Blackwell concluded at once, that
to find out what had become of them was an im-
perative dut}', and immediately rode back to where
he had left Ole H. Ness and found him with Hen-
ry Hulverson, A. Nelson Fosen and several others
who had assembled and were discussing the mat-
ter.
The men were all in favor of going at once to
the scene of the ti"agedy and securing, if alive, the
girl and child.
It was after dark when they arrived at Jones house
and the child was found alive — the remainder of
the story has been told, and needs not to be re-
peated.
The child was brought to Forest City and kept
some months by Mr. and Mrs. Jewett and subse-
quently placed in charge of Mr. Charles H. Ellis
of Otsego, Wright county, since which time we
have lost track of him.
Jones gave the Indians no liquor, and while
there was liquor in Jones' house, up to the time of
the inquest on Monda}- afternoon, there was no ap-
43 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
peanince of its having hec>n molested. At the time
of the inquest all the liquor in the house was poured
on the ground.
To show the evident design of these Indians to
commit the tragedy at this point, we give the tes-
timony of the wife of Mr Howard Baker at the
coroner's inquest conducted by A. C. Smith, then
Judge of Probate and acting County Attorney.
Her testimony was as follows:
"About II o'clock A. M. four Indians came into our
house, staid about 15 minutes, got up and looked
out. had the men take down their gfuns and shoot
them off at a mark, then bantered for a trade with
Jones. About 12 o'clock two more Indians came
and got some water; our guns were not reloaded;
the Indians loaded their guns in the dooryard; I
went back into the house, did not suspect anything
at the time; supposed the}- were going away; next
I knew I heard the report of a gun and saw Web-
ster fall; he stood and fell near the door; another
Indian came to the door and aimed at Howard
Baker and shot; did not kill him at that time;
he shot the other barrel of his gun at Howard and
he fell.
"My mother walked to the door and another In-
dian shot her; she turned to run and fell into the
buttery; thev shot at lier twice as she fell.
IirSTORV OF MEEKER COUNTY. 43
I tried to g^et out of the window, but fell down cel-
lar; saw Mrs. Webster pulling her husl)and into
the house, dont know where she was prior to this:
Indians immediately left the house: while I was in
the cellar I heard firing out of doors.
Jones said the}" were Sioux Indians and that he
was well acquainted with them. Two of the In-
dians had on white men's coats; one quite tall, one
quite small, one thick and chubby and all middle
aged Indians, one had two feathers in his cap and
one had three. Jones said "they asked me for
whisky but I would not give them any.'"
This testimony shows a deliberate intention to
massacre Jones' family. The facts are, that Rob-
inson Jones kept a sort of frontier public house and
kept various articles of groceries, &c., with which
he used to traffic with the Indians, with whom he
was well acquainted, and obtained their furs and
other proceeds of their hunting expeditions, and
they had by some means got into his debt 40 or ^o
dollars, which sum Jones had made arrangements
to have paid out *;/ their annuities.
Certain Indian traders claimed the monopoly of
the fur trade, and had for some years been in the
habit of making advances to the Indians with the un-
derstanding that the Indians were to return to the
traders the proceeds of the chase — the balance if
44 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY,
any to be jerked (in a manner only known to In-
dian traders) out of the next succeeding annuities.
Jones little traffic was interfering quite mater-
ially with those traders, and was setting a bad pre-
cedent, and this may, perhaps, furnish a better clue
than whisky, to the destruction of Jones' family,
and which in its results, produced far more than
the traders bargained for. The Indians were dis-
satisfied witli all the traders, and Jones with the
rest.
Any one who understands the Indian trading
system, as sanctioned by the Indian Department at
Washington, can fill up the balance of the picture
— those who do not, will never know any more
about the origin of the Indian massacre than they^
do now. •
On Monday morning the iSth of August, news of
the Acton massacre reached Forest City, and in less
than an hour A. C. Smith. J. B. Atkinson, Milton
Gorton and a few others accompanied by Airs.
Gorton and Mrs. Jewett, were on their way to the
scene of the tragedy — with increasing numbers
they arrived at Acton some sixty strong — held an
inquest and buried the dead. On their return in
the evening, the whole community was in a pan-
ic and appeared to be in Forest City.
An inquest was held as above stated and while
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 45
engaged with the inquest a" band of eleven mount-
ed Indians came in sight of the place where the
people were assembled, whereupon a detail oi our
mounted men gave chase and drove them off into
Kandiyohi county.
Subsequent developments rendered it certain
that those Indians had no hand in the Acton trag-
edy, and in fact knew nothing about it at that
time.
On Tuesday, news arrived of the outbreak on
the Minnesota River and Mr. Smith prepared a
letter to Gov. Ramsey, demanding guns and ammu-
nition, and of six or seven hundred people in For-
est City, Jesse V. Branham sen., then 60 years of
age, was the only one to volunteer and obligate
himself to take it to the Governor in St. Paul — 100
miles in twenty-four hours.
Father Branham performed the service in nine-
teen hours on Wednesday, on horseback, riding
the first nineteen miles bareback !
The following is a copy of the somewhat laconic
letter of the Judge.
Forest City, Aug. 20th, (6 a. m.) 1S62,
His Exellency, Alexander Ramsey, Gov-
ernor, &c. — Sir — In advance of the news from
the Minnesota River, the Indians have opened on
us in Meeker. It is war ! A few propose to
46 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
make a stand here. -Send us, forthwith, some
good guns, and ammunition to match.
, Yours Truly, A. C. SMITH.
On receiving this letter about i o'clock A.
M. . of the 2 1st, Governor Ramsey with a prompti-
tude which has ever distinguished him in his offi-
cial business, found Mr. Geo. C. Whitcomb in St.
Paul (County Treasurer of Meeker County) and
directed 75 stand of Springfield muskets with a
suitable amount of fixed ammunition, to be placed
in his charge, with transportation to Forest City,
where he arrived about 1 1, a. m. of the 23d,
In the meantime about all the people had left
Forest City and but few were known to be in the
County.
On the morning of the arrival of these guns there
were but thirteen men and three women on the
townsite of Forest City, and nobody west of us.
Their names are worth recording, for it was the
decision of the little band at this point on the morn-
ing of August 23d that saved all there was worth
saving west of the Mississippi River.
Their names areA. C. Smith. J. B. Atkinson, T.
C. Jewett, Milton Gorton, Geo. S. Sholes, sen,,
Thos. H. Skinner, James M. Harvey, Wm. Towler,
Henry L. Smith, Thomas Grayson, Judson A. Stan-
ton, Hamlet Stevens, Sylvester Stevens, Mrs.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTX. 47
Jewett, Mrs. Whitcomb and Mi's. Brown.
During the week previous one hundred and
seventy teams — mostly double,passed through For-
est City on their way "out to the Mississippi
River" — averaging from five to twelve persons to
a team, with such goods and chattels as
could be hastily packed on the wagon
for immediate use. Seventy two of these had left
on the morning of the 22d, and before the arrival
of the guns — the persons above named had also
discussed the propriety of vacating home and
country, when Whitcomb hove in sight "over the
hill by "Uncle Ikes" a bakers dozen of caps and
stove pipe hats went up about as high as single
arms could toss them.
Whitcomb passed through Hutchinson and find-
ing the boys there about as destitue as we, allowed
them to subtract 31 of the guns and a part of the
ammunition from his ambulance, leaving us but 44
cruns and 2000 rounds.
On Sunday the 24th, a military organization was
effected and by the next day over thirty had joined
and a portion were mounted, all comers were
thereafter politely required to do military duty.
The following is a copy of the article of com-
pact, viz.
"We the undersigned do solemly swear to bear
true allegiance to the United States and the State
of Minnesota and the officers which may be elec-
48
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
ted or appointed over us, to the best of our ability.
in accordance with Captains commission issued
TO G. C. Whitcomb, by Col. H. H. Sibley ! I
bearing date August 20th, 1862, (mustered in, Au-
gust 24th, 1862.)
J. B Atkinson,
O. B. Todd.
J. HeMth,
J. V. Bi-anhnm jr.,
S. W. White,
Jas. Lang.
Samuel Hutchins,
A'bert Sperry,
A. 0. Smith,
J. B. Garrison,
Thos. Grayson,
Jos. Thomas,
Oslog Olson,
F. G. Gould,
E. A. Ghapin,
R. B. Ralston,
Henry Jahn.son,
A. Hamilton,
H. Lutons,
H. Behrmann,
M. Gorton.
A. F. Heath,
Wm. Caswell,
G. S. Sholes sen.,
Chas. D Mayhee,
Sylvester Stevpns,
Patrick Condon,
J. H. Bradsliaw,
Andrew Nelsor
Dan. WfGraw,
C. E. Payson,
Thos. Ragan,
H. Stevens,
Alga Olson,
Wm. Branham,
Eli Gihbins,
H. S, Howe,
Lory Smith,
Chas. Kruger,
Nels Tornom,
Jas. M. Harvey,
O. W. Waggoner
H.J. Hill, ;
Jerome Rogers,
Herman Kriiscr.
Oliver Gibbins.
T. C. Jewett,
W. Johnson,
Michael McGraw,
Geo. R. Page, ,
Jesse F. Cobb/
Henry L. Smith,
Alfred Mou.sley,
A. B. Hoyt,
D. Chapin,
Wm. Wilcox,
H. Mickelson,
N H. Wliite
D. M. Holbrook,
E. Swoiitart,
G. C. Whitcomb claimed to be Captain by virtue
his receipt for the
p under any other
of Col. Sibley's commission and
guns and refused to give them u
circumstance.
The following were thereupon elected officers,
VIZ
1st Lieutenant J. B. Atkinson,
2nd do
1st. Sergeant
2nd do
3d do
4th do
1st CorporHl
H. Stevens,
Wm. Branham,
H. S. Howe,
Dan. McGraw,
F. G. Gould,
A. F. Heath,
2nd Corporal H. J.Hill,
3d
4th
fitb
6th
7lh
8th
do
do
do
do
do
do
T. C. Jewett,
Sam Hutching,
J. M. Harvey,
R. B. Ralston,
N. H. White.
A.B. Hoyt.
The 44 Springfield Muskets were distributed to
the men as far as they went — remainder unarmed,
except with a few Belgian guns that had been re-
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 49
ceived from some quarter, and as it was thought
best to have the men armed, all mounted, and as
we had but 1 5 horses and it was ascertained that a
a party of skedadlers wei'e yet lingering in King-
ston, a detail was made to the extent of all the
horses on hand, with a man and gun on each, to
go to Kingston and seize horses.
The following were detailed for that pleasing duty.
1st Lieutenant .T. B. Atkinson, 2nd Corp'l H. J. Hill,
1st Sergeant Wm . Branham, 3rd do T. C. Jewett,
2nd Serjeant H S.Howe, 4th, do Sam Hutchins,
1st Corp'l A. V. Hoath, 5th do R. B. Ralston,
O. B. Todd, G. W. Waefroner,
C. McGraw. * Michael McGraw,
H. Krnger, F. G. Gould
A. Hamilton.
Eight officers and seven privates — and this was
the first militarv movement in the countv, and was
made of the right material.
They went to Kingston armed and equipped,
whereupon the first Lieutenant declared martial
law! ordered T. C. Jewett to occupy the Clear
Water bridge and allow none to escape unless they
could speak the word plain — very, very plain,
w^hich one or two are said to have done — cab-
baged 23 horses (the best to be had) and returned
with their bootv to Forest Citv.
Forage detail; B. Cobb, J. A. Stanton, DeLama-
ter and Oliver Gibbins.
Stock guard; W. H. Towler and Gottlip Reef
Thus ended Sunday's exploits August 24th 1862.
CHAPTER V,
The Adjutaut General migilit well be excused
in styling us "Irregular" when connected with the
fact that the horses were cal^baged upon demo-
cratic principles — no partiality being shown
among horses or men — all were taken that could
be found — in size of horses, from the Indian pony
to the trace horse weighing i,6oo, with switches
from 8 inches to 3 feet long, and soldiers to match
from five feet two, to six feet eight, with weight
from no to 240 lbs., some in stoga boots, and oth-
ers in nature's moccasins. The Adjutant General
must have been a man of extraordinary genius to
have found any other name for us than "irregular."
On Monday morning, August 25th, a detail of 27
men was made for the purpose of visiting Monon-
galia county — now part of Kan-di-yo-hi — in pursuit
(50)
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 5I
of Indians, returning on the 27th, having penetra-
ted some thirty-five or forty miles west, and
having seen no Indians but buried seven mutilated
bodies in all and passed the ruins of three dw^ellings
and quite a number of mutilated carcasses of dead
cattle.
The following is a copy ot Qiiarter Master's
commission issued to James M. Harvey, Esq.
Forest City, Aug. aSth, 1S62.
I hereby appoint Jas. M. Harvey to serve as
Qiiarter Master for "Meeker County Volunteers,"
and he is hereby authorized and empowered to
exercise the duties of the office.
On Wednesday the 27th ot August, the follow-
ing named persons, residents of Manannah, left
Forest City to obtain stoves bedding, provis-
ions, stock, etc., to- wit: Linus Howe, David
Hoar, Chauncy Wilson, Moody Caswell, Thomas
Ryckman, James Nelson, Phillip H. Deck, Wil-
mot Maybee, N. C. Caswell, Joseph Page and R.
D. C. Cressy. Arriving at the house of Maybee
the party took dinner, thence went to Manannah
to the house of Carlos Caswell — saw no Indians —
left a yoke of cattle in CaswelTs barn, intending
to return and pass the night there, thence the par-
ty went two miles to the house of Silas Caswell,
and loaded Mavbee's two-horse waofon with bed-
52 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
cling and provisions, whereupon Maybee and Page
started with Maybee's team, and Deck and Howe
with Deck's one-horse vehicle, on their return to
the residence of Carlos Caswell, the balance of the
party scattering for the purpose of recovering
stock. Just as Maybee's and Deck's teams went into
Caswell's door-yard, they were fired upon by a
party of Indians concealed behind a pile of lumber
and a fence, and some in a corn-field.
Page was killed, and fell from the wagon, Deck
and Howe rode about twentv rods, when they too
fell, fatally pierced by bullets. Maybee ran his horses
about forty rods, when he was headed off by the
savages, whereupon he left his team and ran about
thirty rods further, in the direction of the river,
where he was shot and instantly killed.
Those exciting scenes were witnessed by Wil-
son and Ryckmanat a distance of about sixty rods,
but they were in no condition to render the least
assistance, their guns being on the wagon.
The Indians about fifteen in number, after secu-
ring the horses and wagons, started west, passing
within thirty yards of Nelson and N. C. Caswell,
who mistaking them for white men let them pass
unmolested — but followed at a safe distance behind
for about a mile, the redskins stopping once, ap-
parently to form an acquaintance, but soon drove
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 53
ofF at a rapid rate and were seen no more.
The remainder of the party returned to Forest
City — Wilson and Ryckman — via Main Prairie,
which thev deemed quite the safest route.
Howe, Alaybee, Deck and Page were among
the best men in the county.
Mr. Howe had been a county commissioner
most of the time for three years previous.
On the morning of the 28th, Lieut. Atkinson
with a detail of 24 men was sent to Manannah;
charged with the melancholy duty of burying the
dead.
On the 23d. Mark Warren Esq., county Atty.
for Meeker county, was arrested at Monticello and
returned to Forest City under guard, on the grave
charge of being a '"Copperhead." Copperheads
were supposed to be in league with the Indians as
well as the South. Warren was furloughed at
Forest City.
On the night of the 27th, while Jesse V. Bran-
ham jr., was standing guard at the creek just out
of Forest City on the south, A. C. Smith, E. S.
Fitch and Mark Warren taking^ a circuit of the
guard, came up to sentinel Branham, and while
conversing with the sentinel, Warren disappeared
in the star-light and was not seen again till the
next spring. When Warren departed Jesse duly
CA HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
exercised his lungs in affectionate efforts for his
return, but concluded not to follow him many
miles south that night as it was too dark to use a
needle gun!
When Warren returned he had a couple of In-
dian ponies and said he had been off on the plains
as a guide for Col. Sibley.
He was a singular genius — the world would nev-
er have been complete without him.
Educated as a lawyer in the office of Hon. J. M.
McShafter, then of Vermont-r-since of California —
he early settled on a pre-emption claim in the town
of Rice City in this County, where he lived a
number of years, was County Commissioner at
times, exhibiting in business transactions a good
sound judgment, made but little improvement on
his farm, was at peace with all the world, no ene-
mies, a democrat from childhood, his time was
principally divided in his cabin between praying
and swearing — 'twas difficult to tell which service
he engaged in with the most zeal.
He was one fall a Democratic candidate for the
Legislature and instead of electioneering for votes,
kept steady at his work, and one day while he was
carrying the hod, tending mason at Greenleaf, the
Hon. Thomas Cowan from St. Peter, who was
that season stumping this Congressional District,
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 55
arrived at Greenleaf and running against a man
working mortar with a hoe, enquired for Hon.
Mark Warren, candidate for the Legislature from
this District.
Mark looked at Cowan for a moment encased in
black broad cloth and kid gloves, then dropping
his hoe, raised both hands above his head and ex-
claimed, loud enough to be heard half a mile, "I'm
your man by G — d sir." Should friend V/arren
still be in the land of the living,and his eye chance
to meet this, he will be after us with a sharp stick
for some part of his "descriptive roll."
On the 30th, (Saturday) a detail was made of
24 men to go to Hutchinson with the view of ob-
taining the guns left there by Whitcomb, but the
paucity of their defensive impliments Induced the
Hutchinson boys to hold on to the guns.
The detail returned to Forest City on Sunday
the 31st.
On the first of September another detail was
made of 17 men of the company and several citi-
zens for the purpose of visiting Green Lake, and
for the ostensible purpose of relieving a family
said to be on the island in said lake in a helpless
condition. It probably should have been Nor-
way Lake as there are no islands in Green Lake
where a family could have been secreted.
56 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTY.
The history of this detail is not material as it re-
turned the same day reporting a skirmish at Swede
Grove with the Indians. Two Indians reported
killed and one of our men Sam. Hutchins. w^oun-
ded in the thigh by a musket ball.
On the morning of the second day of September
another detail of twenty soldiers and twenty citi-
zens was sent out for the purpose of rescuing the
family mentioned before, and as all could not be
mounted it was thought best to go in wagons.
The detail had proceeded as far as where Hoken
Peterson formerly resided when they halted for
dinner.
Some of the boys being near home obtained
leave to visit the house about one mile from camp,
on promise that they would bring back watermel-
ons for the whole company — after being gone a
short time one of them came running back with
his arms full of melons and crying Indians! In-
dians ! ! The company being unable to see any
Indians from their location in the low ground one
of the party was ordered "to run his head out on
the knoll," near by "and take a look." He did so
and reported twelve Indians advancing from the
timber near by, in the direction of camp, and after
being ordered back by the CajDtain, looking
around he saw some twenty or more mounted In-
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. <*]
dians approaching on our west, and the teams
were at once ordered to retreat in the direction of
Forest City, And they did retreat for a fact. It
was a race forUfe and home.
Their ma-ma's didn't know they were out!
Horses that were a Uttle slow, were renewed in
their activity by the point of the bayonet. In the
flight our amiable Captain lost his hat and was un-
able to recover it, on account of two or three In -
dians that were within a half mile of them.
After this wild flight of some two miles, the
teams were ordered to halt, as some of the horses
were about giving out, and being considered safe,
as the enemy were left at least one mile behind.
They had only been halted for a moment when
one of the teams came rushing by and one of the
boys thinking he would be left, sprang for the
wagon, striking the back of his gun on the side of
the box — the gun "went oft"' wounding 0. B. Todd
in the leg and barely missing D. Chapin, tearing
his cartridge box and bayonet scabbard, to shreds.
After resting a few minutes the party proceeded
toward Forest City, without any further accident
except the miring and leaving of one of E. O. Britt's
horses, while with the other Mr. Britt came to
Forest City in advance of the party and ordered
all the women and children into the hotel of Lieut.
58 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Atkinson, and for the remainder of the men left in
Forest City to come out and meet the company; as
the Indians were coming into town.
There were about a baker's dozen of men and
boys left in Forest City, and arming themselves
with whatever thev could find marched out
towards "L'hicle Ikes" with Judge Smith at their
head armed with an old double barrel bogus stub
and-twist-shot gun, and three butcher-knives un-
der the waist-bands of his pants. This was be-
lieved to be the first, last and only time that the
Judge ever commanded a company of Irregular
Volunteer Militia, and is a full report of all of his
military exploits.
At the time Capt. Whitcomb made his last
"double quick" toward Forest City and thought it
safe to leave Britt's horse sticking in the mud
with forty men at command — there were just two
Indians in sight.
There were various men among our people,
who "lived fast", between the 17th of August
and the 4th. of September, 1^862 — some in tragedy
and som.e in comedy — far more peril to individuals
than to companies of men, assembled for mutual
protection.
We could wish that we had a sketch of all such,
including the hair-breadth escapes of men and fam-
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 59
ilies; but the facts are not furnished us, and we
cannot do justice to the parties in interest from
rumors obtained at the time, or from our recollec-
tion of circumstances.
Few men had more difficulty in getting out of
the prairie than our townsman Andrew Nelson —
the following is but one week of his life:
Mr. N. a native of Sweden and but slightly ac-
quainted in this county, at the time, was a single
man and residing in Monongalia county.
On the 2ist of August 1862 he was engaged at
Foot's place haying, with several other parties.
About 4 p. M. his brother-in-law. Swanson,
passed Foot Lake and gave the first alarm — Nel-
son spent some time in assisting Swanson, who had
a wife and three children to get under way — with
but an ox-team — a load of hay had to be dumped
and wagon body substituted for the hay rack —
Nelson took charge of some 40 head of cattle, has-
tily collected, which he intended to drive to. a
place of safety. In all this he was delayed till
dark and he had hardly got off the premises when
the Indians were on the ground.
Two cow-bells — 40 cattle and the darkness fa-
vored Nelson and preserved his scalp. The Indi-
ans were first^ discovered within ten paces and
suppossing them to be white men, Nelson en-
6o HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTY.
quires "how goes it ?" getting no answer, but hear-
ing steps approaching he quietly slid into a corn-
field close by. From the cornfield he ran into
Mud Lake, where he found a desirable resting place
for fifteen or twenty minutes, representing Aloses
in the bulrushes — thence he started for Diamond
Lake, but soon got lost, and Xelson is ready to
swear, that he, that evening, sounded every "sloo"
in the vicinity.
In the morning he found himself on the bank of
a creek — the outlet of Eagle Lake and but about
40 rods from the house of Oscar Erickson, in
which were four families, and the house surroun-
ded by Indians.
It was here that Mr. and Mrs. Foot, Erickson,
Swanson and Carlson defended themselves until
the Indians raised the siege, after killing Carlson-
Nelson made a direct shoot for Diamond Lake,
reaching there about 7 A. m.. — proceeding to the
farm of J. H. Gates, where he found a number of
Diamond Lake people who were preparing break-
fast, but 'n\ consequence of the close proximity of
the Indians, they started for Forest City without
stopping to eat.
Nelson lost his boots on the road and his feet be-
came so sore that he wa? compelled to ride part of
the way — From Forest City he went to Kingston,
/
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 6l
where his feet were dressed up with rags, and
moccasins by Mr. Davidson, the miller. On his
return to Forest City, Swan Munson gave him one
of his horses to ride and when almost half v^'ay
back, met Atkinson with his squad, who ordered
him to halt and sought to levy on his horse — Nel-
son responded that he could not have the horse
unless he took him dead or alive — A. said "come
along" and Nelson joined the crowd and was sub-
sequently out on every detail till the company was
disbanded — at one time in Foot Lake region, Nel-
son lay by the side of a log in the dark, with the
Indians passing on the side of it in the road.
He lost all trace of Swanson and family, and did
not see them again until he met them in St. Pau'
where they now reside.
He did not, of course, succeed in getting any of
the cattle.
Swanson and family were in the house with
Foot and Erickson, and was several times lost on
the prairie in getting to Paynesville with his family.
We have said there were four families in Erick-
sons' house — they were Erickson's, Foot's, Swan-
son and Carlson.
When the Indians first came to Erickson's they
asked for provisions, and young Carlson went
with them into the potatoe patch to dig the pota-
62 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTV.
toes — it was here that young Carlson was shot,and
when found he was dead, with the hoe in one
hand and a couple of potatoes in the other.
While defending themselves in the house, Foot
was shot through the breast and Erickson through
the bowels — Foot killed an Indian after he was
shot, standing on his knees.
The defence of Mr. and Mrs. Foot was so hero-
ic that the Indians raised the siege and left. Sub-
sequently Mrs. Foot came to Forest City and re-
ported her husband in a dying condition, but
strange to say, Foot was, two days later, brought
into Forest City on a load of goods, where he was
kindly cared for for a couple of days and sent to
St. Cloud.
Foot and Erickson still live.
Our fellow townsman N. A. Viren and family,
were in close proximity to these tragical scenes —
his legs and his oxen did him good service. Fall-
ing behind the crowd in consequence of the loss
of an ox, ha besought his company to wait for him
a little while, which they refused to do — when
he overtook them, they were all stuck fast in the
mud in the outlet of the lake just East of Master's
place.
Viren sounded the bank of the lake and finding
hard bottom he drove into the lake and around the
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUKY. 63
SLOO, and started ahead — the 'company called him
to come to their assistance and haul them out. but
he politely informed them that what "was sauce
for goose was sauce for gander" and passed on
and arrived at Forest City a day or two in advance
of his company, who in consequence of the -delay
lost most of their cattle and goods, and two of their
company, Lawrenson and Backland who were
killed and mutilated.
Viren "still lives," a portly well fed gentleman,
and Nelson says that while he repente'd of all his
sins by the side of that log — he gave no prefer-
ence to any particular sin ! ! and has no desire to
live that week over again.
CHAPTER VI.
On the 34fth of August Capt. Strout was ordered
to Forest City via Glencoe and Hutchinson but
deeming Forest City the safest place, from his
stand point, came up the Mississippi direct to the
latter place, arriving on^the eve. of the 27th, and
went into camp near the law office of Judge
Smith.
From a casual conversation, Capt. Strout re-
marked that he was authorized to make a stand
where he could do the most good and should stay
at Forest City a week or ten days, if deemed nec-
essary. On being informed during the evening
that all the Indians then in the country were prob-
ably at Swede Grove about ten miles out, the Cap-
tain very suddenly came to the conclusion that
Glencoe was a safer place for him, and therefore
decamped at sun rise next morning for the latter
(64)
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 65
place, 44 miles south-east, and where no Indians
had, at that time, been seen.
On this fact being reported to head quarters,
Capt. S trout was immediately ordered to return to
Forest City via Acton, which he attempted to do,
and arrived and camped in Jones' door yard in
Acton on the eve. of September 2d, surrounded
by timber and as was afterwards found out to his
sorrow, two hundred and fifty Indians camped
within two miles of him.
Learning of Capt. Strout's movements by the
arrival of a scout from Hutchinson (Thos. Cham-
bers, Esq.,) and knowing that, at this particular
time, a large force of Indians had suddenly ap-
peared at Swede Grove, it was deemed advisable
to intercept Strout, and divert his command to
Forest Cilv w'ithout going to Acton, and as this
was deemed a pretty hazardous undertaking a vol-
unteer detail was invited, when J. V. Branham jr.,
Albert Sperry and Thomas Holmes immediately
seated themselves in the saddle and just before sun
set on the eve of the 2nd of September they started
south through Rice City with the view of heading
Capt. Strout on the Hutchinson and Acton
road and inform him of the nest of hornets he was
unconsciously running his men into.
The rjute of Capt. Strout was principally on
66 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
the old Pembina and Henderson Indian trail, and
on the arrival of our men at that point, sufficient
signs were discovered to satisfy them that Strout
had already passed, and the boys had nothing to
do but follow up the trail, and they did so, and
found Strout as above related, in Jones' door yard,
in one of the most dangerous positions that could
possibly be taken, particularly with 250 savages in
Swede Grove, two or three miles off, and no pick-
ets set.
The balance of the story we give in the lan-
guage of one of the three scouts.
About four miles out from Forest City they saw-
coming toward them a party of five mounted men
and not being able to tell whether they were
friends or foes they halted — one of the boys says:
'well what do you think ?" That looks blue,boys,
but we won't run from five Indians anyhow —
the five halted — we advanced a few steps and we
halted — then the five advanced, and to our joy
we discovered John S. Shields and four others re-
turning from Rice City, where they had been
looking after crops and not aware of the close
proximity of Indians.
Feeling greatly relieved we bade the boys good-
by, after fully posting them up in regard to the
operations of the Indians.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 67
On our wav to Acton we passed across^'tlie
prairie East of Round Lake and West of Minne-
belle, with darkness well settled upon us. We
necessarily avoided all the groves of timber, not
knowing what minute we would he'sent to our long
home by a friendly missile from the gun of the red
gentlemen.
On they went until reaching the old Red River
and Henderson trail (so called), when they com-
menced to search for the tracks of Capt. Strout
and his company — of whicl% they found no evi-
dence until reaching the outlet of the lake near
Evenson's when they halted and got down on their
knees (for once in their lives) to look for tracks.
Here they discovered tracks sufficient to fully sat-
isfy them that Strout's company had passed as
above related on their way to Acton. On they go,
in darkness doubly dark, with nothing to change
the midnight silence until theyreached the edge of
the timber and the cabin where, on the 17th
ult., poor Jones and the Baker ftimily met their
fate without a moment's notice.
On reaching the timber the darkness, which
was total before, became a great deal more so, and
only for our faithful horses the party would have
been unable to keep the road, and right here two
68 HISTORY MEEKER COUNTY.
dogs sprang out with a howl that would have
startled men in ordinary times — but at that time
and under the circumstances narrated, hair had to
be well rooted to hang to the scalp.
After a silent ride of half a mile to where Strout
was camped, with thoughts flitting from the loved
ones m Minneapolis, to the anticipated danger
that hovered over us, we came close up to the tents
— but what do they contain? Friend or foe? — no
picket cried "halt!"
So we says "Tom* let us halt and sing out to
them."
Says Tom. "agreed." So we sang out "Who's
there? Friend come up." When we halted we
could have struck the tents with a stone, and no
picket interposed.
People may say what they please, but if there is
any period in man's existence, in which the heart
will voluntarily and uncalled for, go up to God in
thankfulness for a safe deliverance, it will be under
circumstances in which that little band of three
had been placed between sundown and midnight
during the travel of twenty miles.
CHAPTER VII.
HOW THE BOYS GOT OUT OF ACTOX.
When Captain Strout was informed that a par-
ty of Indians were camped about three miles off
there was considerable excitement among the boys,
-but few slept that night. The old condemned Bel-
gian guns furnished Captain Strout's men by Uncle
Sam to scare the red men with, and which most
of the men thought they would have no use for,
were quickly examined, and it was found that only
about one m five had ammunition that would
fit, and the boys were kept busy till daylight
preparing ammunition that might soon be needed.
By the time it was fairly daylight, breakfast
was called, and while they were yet eating, they
heard the firing of guns about two miles off, and
knowing that they were the only white men near-
(69)
70 HISTORY OK MEEKKR COl-XTY.
er than Forest City or Hutchinson, it was no hard
matter to guess where the firing came from.
On such an invitation it is needless to sav break-
fast was cut short off, and all made ready for a
march.
Strout had 1iut five mounted men and these
were ordered to advance and keep a half a mile in
advance of the company and teams. Albert Sper-
ry one of the five was to keep about two hundred
yards in advance of the other four.
The mounted men had proceeded about two
miles m a southerly direction, when thev discov-
ered the bright barrels of guns glistening on a hill
about a mile ahead, and on the farm pre-empted
by the wndow Baker just opposite Kelley's Blufi".
Our meij continued to advance until within a quar-
ter of a mile when they halted, and sent word back
to Captain Strout that the Indians were just ahead
and to prepare for a fight.
As soon as the company came up the men were
formed in open line and ordered to advance,
which they did until they came within about two
hundred yards of where the Indians had been seen,
• when the Indians opened fire on the company,
which the company promptly returned.
About the third volley, private Getchell fell mor-
tal! v wounded bv a ball through the head. About
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. ^\
this time a party of mounted Indians were
discovered approaching us in the rear, on the road
we had just traveled, and as they came down over
the rolHiig prairie single file with horses and po-
nies at full speed, whooping and yelling as only
wild Indians can, it made a picture long to be re-
membered by those who saw it.
Instantly the second Lieutenant was ordered
back with twenty men to protect the rear of the
train.
Fearing to make a charge most of the mounted
Indians rode around and formed on the right of
the comj^any, and a lake being on the left, Strout
with his little band of sixty three men were com-
pletely surrounded.
After fighting some time, without any particular
damage to either party, reminding the comman-
der of what the Frenchman said of some of the
first great battles of the rebellion, where nobody
was killed on either side, "that it was one very civil
war" but fearing Mr. Sioux Indians would soon
receive reinforcements from another band known
to be less than five miles off",, the captain ordered a
charg^e in the direction of Hutchinson with fixed
bayonets.
This order w^as immediately obeyed under the
lead of Lieutenant Clarke, every man came up to
73 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
the scratch hke old v'eterans. So savs the official
report.
This was prohably the bravest act of the day —
when we take into consideration that "Captain
Strout's company was mosth'^ made up of business
and commercial men and dapper-fingered clerks
from Minneapolis and St. Paul, many of them
hardly knowing enough about fire arms to load
their own pieces, but the red men on the south did
not like close quarters, and scattered in all direc-
tions, and for a time it seemed as though the little-
unpleasantness had ceased, and the teamsters think-
ing: the road clear, started their teams on the run
for Hutchinson, leaving all the compau}- that were
not fortunate enough to climb behind, and the
boys thinking it would be a poor show for broken-
legged men, all hands started pell-mell after the
teams, and for a short time it seemed as though it
was a "Bull Run" on a small scale, and that, too.
after they had beat the red man on a bayonet
charge.
The men did not want it understood that thev
were running away from the Indians, at all, at all.
but when they made the bayonet charge they
came very near not stopping till they got to Hutch-
inson, which reminds us again of an incident at
"Bull Run," when one of the boys of a ^'erm6nt
HISTORY OK MEEKER COUNTY. 73
Resfimeiit was Ditleied to retreat; he obeyed or-
ders and (no counter order being received,) he
kept on retreating until he reached the north Der-
by line and only halted then, in order that he
misrht not do violence to international law.
The Captain and his few mounted men soon
broueht the boys to a halt, and order was restored
in less time than it usualh took McClellan to re-
orgfanize the army of the Potomac.
The Indians seeing the Company on the run,
put after them in full uniform, that is to say, they
divested themselves of all that makes the man, to-
w'it, "good clothing."
Many of them \vhen first seen, had on black
cloth suits and "biled" shirts.
Before proceeding any further in the descrip-
tion of the "days doings," we wish to mention one
bright and noble oasis in the catalogue of Indian
character usually made up of ambush and tr eachery.
While the skirmish was hottest and just before
the charge was made, one of the Indians, supposed
to have been Little Crow, deliberately stepped
upon the top of a fence, about one hundred and
fifty yards in front of the Company, and waving
his blanket, save some orders to the Indians in our
rear.
As soon as he mounted the fence Captain
74 HISTORY OF MHHKEU COUNTY.
Strout asked for some good marksman to take him
oft. Two or three of his boys tried and all missed
him, when the whole Company was ordered to
fire at him, but it seems to have' been foi-e-ordered
that he was not to die on that fence, for he stood
the torrent of, and received the whole volley of
sixty-three old Belgian bullets unscathed, where-
upon Mr. Indian coolly stepped down from the
fence, made a graceful bow, with a waive of the
hand, as much as to say "thank you gentlemen."
The whole affaii was so bold and graceful that
our men could hardly refrain from giving the old
red-skin three rousing cheers.
About this time order was restored among the
men, private Jes^se V. Branham Jr., one of the
three volunteer scouts from Forest City the night
before, having stopped to load his gun, was shot
from behind, the ball passing through his left
lung. Fortunately he did not. fall, but had strength
enough to walk until he overtook the teams. He
was supposed to be mortally wounded, but on the
contrary he is now on his pegs and in fact healthy,
residing at Litchfield. From this time a running
fight was kept up for about seven miles, during
which time Stone of Minneapolis and another pri-
vate whose name we do not now recollect, were
killed, and about one third of the entire company
wounded.
mSTOin' OF MEEKER COUNTY. 75
When the company hailed at Cedar Mills for
water and a little rest for the wounded, they found
they had lost three men killed and left on the
ground.
The remains were afterward buried by the 3d
Regiment boys.
There were eighteen wounded, Captain Strout
in his official report says: "The loss of the com-
pany in this encounter was three men killed and
fifteen wounded, some of them severely, all were,
howe^'er, brought from the field."
The reader will notice a material discrepancy in
regard to the dead. That the 3d Regiment boys
did not bury them, or Strout did not take them
with him, requires no proof.
Captain Strout continues, "in addition to this,
the}" lost most of their rations, cooking utensils,
tents, and a portion of their ammunition and arms.
Some of their horses became unmanageable and
ran away. Some weie abandonded, making with
those killed by the enemy, an aggregate loss of
nine. The loss inflicted on the enemy could not
be determined with any degree of certainty, but
Captain Strout was of the opinion that their killed
and wounded was two or three times as great as
ours,,"- — doubtful.
About one half the savages were mounted, partly
•
76 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
on large fine horses, plundered from the settle-
ments, and partly on Indian ponies. The latter
were so well trained, that their riders would drive
them at a rapid rate to within any desirable dis-
tance, when both pony and rider would instantly
lie down in the tall grass and thus conceal them-
selves from the sharp-shooters of the Company,
(of which there must have been manv, judging
from the effect of the volley fired at the Indian on
the ^ence.)
The Indians engaged in the skirmish were esti-
mated at about one hundred and fift}- to two hun-
dred.
From Mr. Cross of Cedar Lake our men pro-
cured lint for the wounded, and proceeded on their
way to Hutchinson, arriving at that point Wednes-
day afternoon.
Mr. Cross was killed by the Indians a few days
after, as heretofore related.
On arriving at Hutchinson, the wounded were
placed in the Sumner House, where they received
all the kind attention from both men and women
ot Hutchinson that could be asked or desired, for
all of which the boys united in a "•God bless them
with long life and plenty of this world's goods to
make them happy both here and hereafter."
We have given a somewhat detailed account
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 77
of the Acton conflict, as it was the only one that
took place in the County deserving the name of a
battle.
Our report is made up partly from the official
report of Captain Strout, but principally, and more
reliably from the vivid recollection of Jesse V.
Branham, Jr. Esq. one of the Forest Citv scouts
sent out to head off Strout, and who was with him
the day of the battle and supposed to have been
mortally wounded by an Indian bullet. Strout's
official report was a mixture of truth and folly,
inconsistent with a just regard for the character
of his soldiers, who cheerfully volunteered to take
the field under all the adverse circumstances atten-
dant on a hasty collection of men from work shops
and the counter, totally ignorant of the art of war,
and unused to the discipline of a military camp.
Strout himself was as little qualified for the post
he occupied, as were any of the men for the prac-
tice of war.
His pusillamious course when he first entered
on Indian Territory, marked him as an ill-qualified
and unsafe leader.
Alluding to the different onsets of the Indians
during the day, Strout says in his official report,
78 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
"on none of these occasions, however, did a single
man falter or attempt a flight."
Branham says the teamsters ran with their teams
and the men ran "pell-mell to keep up" and when
Strout adds, in his report, that he had lost, during
the battle, most of their rations, cooking utensils,
tents, ammunition and arms, and nine or ten hor-
.ses, it certainly looks as though Branham had the
TRUTH on his side.
The fault was with the Captain, not the men.
It pains us deeply to feel compelled, in the light
of historical truth, to speak of Capt. Strout as we
do, well remembering the old adage, that to
avoid speaking ill of those of whom we have but
little reason to speak well, is the temperance of
aversion, and seldom found in ordinary minds.
CHAPTER Vlir.
On the 24th, of Augvist, orders were issued to
Col. B. F. Smith, commandant at Fort SnelHng,
directing him to arm and equip the company of
troops under command of Captain Strout then of
the loth Regiment, and detail them to proceed "to
Foi'est City and such other places in the vicinity as
expediency might requnx, for the purpose of pro-
tecting and assuring the inhabitants of that re-
gion." As heretofore narrated in Chap. VI, p. 64,
Strout arrived at Forest City on the eve of the
27th of August, and w^ent into camp near the res-
idence of Judge Smith, and stated that he could
remain there if necessary till further orders.
He was reliably informed that all the Indians
then known to be on the frontier were at Swede
Grove about ten miles west of Forest City.
(79)
So HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
On the 3d of September the stockade was built
by the citizens then in Forest City — about 120 feet
square, by planting a double row of logs on end,
three feet in the ground and about ten feet high,
with bastions — it was built and finished up in less
than 24 hours and I venture to say on the quick-
est time that any such edifice was ever erected
in the United States — and well that we did so — for
we were treated to a ceremonious call at 3 o'clock
on the morning of the 4th by about two hundred
and fifty Savages.
Our hasty uncarpeted accommodations took the
red devils by surprise. They had not previously
discovered our accommodations, and at once gave
up the idea of assailing us in quarters, and con-
fined their operations to a little promiscous, careless
shooting of old guns, and stealing horses, which
unfortunately we had not secured within the
stockade prior to their polite arrival.
Some ten or twelve Indians lost their lives here
that morning in consequence of the inexperience,
and un-soldier-like careless shooting by our boys.
The boys all meant well but they didn't know
any better, and notwithstanding the assertion of
dapper-fingered historians to the contrary, the In-
dians falsified said history by carrying their dead
from the field of carnarge before day. Only one
white man was seriously wounded.
A gentleman from Canada had arrived at For-
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 8l
est City but a day or two before and was sleeping
in the back of Mr. Hoyt's house and awoke just in
time to see the Indians firing the front end of the
house, and had the good kick to sHp out at a back
window and secrete himself in a corn patch in the
garden, and while in this interesting position saw
five dead Indians piled into a double wagon by
the side of the burning house.
The next morning, at the request of this gentle-
man, we gave him a letter to Gov. Ramsey which
enabled him to get out of Minnesota, and have not
seen him since, but we have heard that he is not a
believer in "going west."
The celebrated "crazy" Irishman came stroUingr
into town some days prior to the attack, as a spy
for the Indians, and had he been allowed to return
to his employers, the attack would probably have
been more successfully made some days earlier.
Not being able to pronounce the word "Shibbo-
leth" he was placed in 'durance vile' and ultimate-
ly shipped under guard to Monticello — thence to
St. Paul where he was magnified into a harmless
martyr by the moccasin aristocracy of the Saintly
City and thence was allowed to depart to parts
unknown.
This was the same "crazy" Irishman described
by Mrs. Baker, and who passed Howaixl Baker's
82 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
house just after the Indians, and who robbed the
dead body of Baker of 50 to 70 dollars in gold.
Six dwelling houses and one barn were burned
at Forest City on the morning of the 4th, of Sep-
tember, viz: of Wm. Richardson, Milton Gorton,
James P. Hewlett. Dudley Taylor, A. B. Hoyt,
William Richards and A. C. Smith.
Mrs. T. C. Jewett, Mrs. Whitcomb and Mrs.
Brown were the only ladies that remained at For-
City the entire period of these exciting times.
There were 12 persons killed in Meeker County
and 13 in Monongalia the names of which were, in
Meeker, Robinson Jones, Ann Baker. Viranus
Webster, Clara D. Wilson, Philip Deck, Joseph
Page, Linus Howe, Wilmot Maybee, ,NeIs Olsen,
Caleb Sanborn and Cross, and in July 1863 James
McGannon. In Monongalia three Olsen's, father
and two sons, Anderson and son, Carl Carlson
and son, Mr. Backland, Mr Lawrenson and the
Lumberg family, and nine in McLeod County,
contiguous to Meeker, viz: Mr. Spondy, wife and
two children, one child of John Adams (taking
John Adams prisoner) and four of the White fam-
ily at Lake Addie. Mr. Adams was taken priso-
ner Sept. 4th.
Total killed in Meeker and vicinity, thirty-three,
and probably some who have never been reported.
HISTORY OF xMEEKER COUNTY. 83
July I St, 1S63 McGannon was shot between
Kingston and Fair Haven, probably by Little
Crow in person, as this distinguished chieftain
was a few days after shot by Mr. Lamson on sec-
tion 30 Town iiS — 39 (Collinwood) Meeker
County, and was found in possession of McGan-
non's coat.
The section on which he was killed is indicated
on the map accompanying this book.
The great native warrior, together with his son —
young Crow, were quietly making a dinner of
raspberries, when the Irishman's bullet called him
to his final account.
Little Crow and son were dining tosfethel- — and
Lamson and son were out huntingr together
— the hunters came suddenly in sig-ht of the In-
dians and seeing them first, quickly resolved that
white man must scoop Indian, or Indian would
scoop white man, and suiting the action to the
word, and being a good shot, Lamson scooped
Crow — while his son aimed at young Crow, miss-
ing him, but disabling his gun — whereupon young
Crow fled and left the country — subsequently fol-
lowed the trail of Gen. Sibley's army across the
plains, as we were informed, and finally ran into
Gen. Sibley's camp in pretty much the condition of
Lee's army when he ran in into Gen.
§4 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNT V.
Grant's camp — to get something to to eat !
Little Crow was buried at Hutchinson without
much ceremony, and without full knowledge at
that time that it was in fact Little Crow.
Little Crow was a small sized man and a savage
chieftain of singular power and genius, always evil
disposed to the whites, as was his father 30 or
40 years before. With strong intellect and an un-
l)ending will, but had become disgusted with the
management of the war by the other chieftains of
the hostile tribes.
We have not heard of any new speculations in
regard to Little Crow's remains for some years.
The last we heard of them some live Yankee
near Hutchmson had his bones in an old soap-
box, and was trying to drive a sharp bargain by
selling them to the Minnesota Historical Society —
with what success we never learned — alas for hu-
man— or rather inhuman fame and greatness. Re-
port has it, that said Society is in possession of
Little Crow's scalp (we doubt whether he was
ever scalped) which had been carefully tanned
and consequently will not decay — so that future
generations can look on the polished top knot
with a due amount of reverence.
So far as the fact is concerned, it is of little con-
sepuence whether the tanned scalp now in the
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 85
archives of the State Historical Society ever
covered Little Crow's pate or not, if after-genera-
tions only think so, it is just as well, and the man
who scalped Christopher Columbus, and could
not find where John Rogers was burned Feb. 14th,
1554, will be dead long before the fraud will be dis-
covered, and as there is no prospect of his leaving
any male heirs, posterity will not be likely to
trouble itself about the fact. Another report has
it, that one J. D. Farmer, of Spring Valley, Minn,
became possessor of Little Crow's skull soon after
his death and presented it to Dr. Powell of Lanes-
boro, and that one Dr. Twitchell of Chatfield has
thefbalance of Little Crow's "frame work," — doubt-
ful.
CHAPTER IX.
The morning of the 4th, of September 1S62, was
celebrated in Forest City by the early arrival of
about 200 Indians They were evidently unaware
of the existence of our stockade and appearances in-
dicated that they intended to take the people b}'
surprise.
Coming into town at 3 a. m., some twenty or
more mounted Indians advanced to about the cen-
ter of the town-site and discharged a volley in the
air — evidently intending to rouse the sleeping set-
tlers, and during the panic, have things their own
way. In this they were disappointed.
With what we knew of the Indians in the coun-
t}', an attack had for some two days, been deemed
a moral certainty and we were as well prepared
for them as we could have been — Guided solely h\
(86)
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 87
the light of the '-volley In the air" some twenty of
our men fired over the pickets of the stockade and
five Indians 'bit the dust" and were subsequently
loaded into a wagon at Hoyt's house.
A picket guard surrounded the town, and most
of them continued on the second beat, a list of the
men standing guard that night has not been pre-
served but J^mong them we find H. Stevens, Chaun-
cy Dart, Andrew Nelson, Henry L. Smith Wm.
Branham and Sylvester Stevens, with others.
The Indians forded the river on the west and
came in betwee;i sentinels Smith and Dart, who
were the first to give the alarm, by the discharge
of their pieces — this was immediately passed
round the town by the entire guard and all started
for the stockade, the Indians in the mean time giv-
ing a grand war whoop and discharged a volley
apparently in the air, as above stated.
The moon having just gone down, it was re-
markably dark and sentinel Dart in taking a b —
for the stockade, suddenly found hiinself in a "coal-
pit hole" where he lost his hat and gun — being
some-what in a hurry he had passed along a few
rods, when the ludicrous in his composition got
the better of his fears, and he went back and recov-
ered his hat and gun.
Henry L. Smith in his b — passed his fathers
88 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
law office and brought up at the Hotel barn, where
the mail boy was fruitlessly endeavoring to saddle
and bridle his horse, preparatory to starting to
Monticello with the mail.
Sentinel Smith assisted the boy in getting the
horse properly equipped and started off, by which
time diverse and sundry bullets, were remmding
H. L. that no further delays were allowable.
The Indians finding a pretty formidable stock-
ade did not attempt to enter it, but confined them-
selves to stealing such household goods as could be
most easily carried off. Sixty horses were stolen
that morning and four or five buildings ransacked
and burned.
The mail carrier came back from Kingston
about 7 o'clock a. m. in company with C. F. Davis,
to ascertain the result of the attack.
A report of the nights doings was drawn up by
A. C. Smith and signed by Whitcomb and sent that
morning by mail to Gov. Ramsey.
A little before daylight two families came to the
stockade, from the school house, where they hat
spent the night, viz: N. E. Tornbom, wife and four
children — one of tliem Sophia — now the wife of
John Lundberg (Sheriff^ (jf Stevens County) and
Charles Magnus, wife and two children; also
Mrs. (Hodgeson,) mothe of Ole (Ilodgeson.)
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 89
The school house had been the nucleus for a
band of the Indians, but not anticipating that any
one was in the house, its occupants remained un-
molested for nearly two hours.
In the stockade that morning there were some 40
men armed with Springfield muskets and about 200
old men, women and children — most of them un-
able to get out of the country.
General Isaac Fletcher of Lyndon — late a mem
ber of Congress from Vermont, once boasted on
the floor of the House of Representatives at
Washington that "no hostile flag ever entered on
the soil of Vermont and returned to its original
abode".
We don't claim that the Sioux Indians entered
Meeker County with a hostile flag — but we had a
very good one at the top of our liberty pole, which
entirely escaped our memory that night and the
Indians took it down and ran off' with it.
After day light some Indians were in the act of
driving off" cattle when Sergeant Wm. Bran-
ham, called for a squad of men to go out and head
them off — six went out — three in a squad — the
foremost consisting of Wm. Branham, H. L. Smyth
and Aslog Olson; the cattle were saved, but Olson
was shot through the breast, Branham in the arm,
while vSmith remained unharmed. The rear
90 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
squad countermarched to the stockade without
waiting for orders,, the wounded men recovered.
Lieut. Atkinson was on his way from Clearwat-
er with suppHes, and was two or three miles out,
when he learned of the attack and in the exercise
of a sound discretion, conchided to start a new ho-
tel in the hushes, and dumped his provisions and
supplies and himself into the biggest grove of
hazel brush and prickly-ash to be found. He sub-
sequently changed.his mind and 'returned to Forest
City.
The Indians retired from Forest City about five
o'clock in theynorning, dividing into three parties.
The first took the Manannah road — the second
due south (m the Greenleaf road and the third the
Rice City road — simultaneously firing the residen-
ces of Dudley Taylor, Milton Gorton and Wm.
Richardson, situated each about a mile from town,
one house on each road. .
We have since been told, that at the Indian tri-
als at Mankato, the chiefs admitted a loss of
eleven at Forest Citv. We cannot vouch for its
truth. From what was seen, and from examina-
tions subsequently made we guarantee that seven
were killed — how or where the other four lost
their breathing apparatus, is more than we can tell.
About ten o'clock on the morning of the 4th,
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 9I
and about fi^-e hours after the disappearance
of the Indians, Capt. Nelson and Lieut. J. B.
Blanchard with Thomas Dunham, Henry Brad-
ford, Fred Hilter Elder Brooks and some 30 oth-
ers came in from Manannah, where it appears
they were encamped the night before. They were
from Monticello, Wiight County and came by
way of St. Cloud and Paynesville to Manannah.
Whether the object of their mission was for
more than a tour of inspection is unknown.
They made no stop at Forest City, and rendered
us no service.
Apprehensive of a renewal of the attack on the
night of the 5th, or 6th, there was no sleep to the
eye or slumber to the eyelid for the two succeed-
ing nights, by those in Forest City, but no fur-
ther demonstration was made by the Indians.
On the 9th, of September Maj. Welch with
aI)out 300 men — a portion of the 3rd. Regiment
passed torough Forest City on their way to the
Minnesota River, remaining at Forest City but one
night,
Capt. Petitt's company B. 8th Regiment hastily
organized at Faribault, Rice Coimty, ai rived at
Forest City, went into quarters there on the 15th,
of September and was the first military organiza-
tion sent to our assistance — twenty-_iine days after
92 HI«TORV OK MEEKER COUNTY.
the massacre at Acton, and after the main bod}' of
the Indians had returned to the vicinity of the
Minnesota River..
Forest City liad thus presented the only suc-
cessful barrier to the passage of the Indians to
Kingston — Fairhaven and Clearwater on the Miss-
issippi River.
The Indians show^ed no disposition to pass and
leave m their rear the post at Forest City, unless
they could first wipe it out of existence or take its
possession from the whites.
Capt. J. C. Whitney's Company C. 6th Regi-
ment arrived at Forest City, Nov. 22nd, iS6a, and
went into winter quarters in the stockade while
Capt. Petilt's company occupied the hotel.
Capt. Whitney's company was ordered to Fort
Snelling, Feb. 26th 1S63, and again Sep. 25th '63
he returned to Kingston — remaining about one
month, when his command went across the plains
to the Missouri River, as an escort to a supply
train — returned to Kingston Jan. 5th 1S64, and
thence for the south the following June.
On the 27th of Feb. the day after Capt. Whit-
ney left for Fort Snelling — Capt. O. C. Meriman
arrived with Company B, 6th, Regiment and re-
mained till the 26th, of April following.
On the 24th, two days prior to the departure of
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 93
Merimain's compan} , Lieut. Clark Keysor arrived
with 21 privates and 4 non-commissioned officers
of Capt. Dane's company E 9th, Regiment and
occupied the stockade. Capt. Wilson's company
of cavalry passed Forest City on the 8th, of May
'63, for Fort Ridg-elv.
On ther 9th, of June Little Crow and son
crossed the Forest City and Clearwater turnpike,
about four miles out from Forest City, with two
horses stolen at vSilver Creek in the county of
Wright.
Lieut. Keysor being apprised of the fact, took
eight men and went out on the Clearwater road
with the view of following their trail, but returned
next morning without success, having been in the
woods all night and passed the places where Lit-
tle Crow and son had eaten both dmner and sup-
per.
Little Crow and son forded the river three or
four miles above Forest City early'on the morning
of the loth, and passed on west — the trail could
b£ easily followed.
Knowing that two Indians were in the woods
west of Forest City and that they would necessar-
ily cross the river at or near the old fords, Thos
Grayson, H. L. Smith, Jas.M. Harvey and Robert
Holmes, volunteered to watch two fording places
94
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY
on the river between Forest City and Manannah
on the night of the 9th, — but for some purpose un-
known these parties went to Manannah and spent
the night, on returnmg found the fresh trail as
above stated, and at the same time appeared Capt.
John Cady and five of his men en-rt)u(e for Paynes-
ville.
Cady selected two of his men and took the trail
and finally overtook the Indians on the nth, on
the bank of Lake '-Arthur" in Kandiyohi county,
when a skirmish immediately took place in which
Capt Cady was shot through the breast and killed,
the balance of the party returned, bringing the re-
mains of Cady to Forest City, where they were
properly cared for and forwarded to his friends in
Anoka.
July Sth, Capt. Dane appeared and removed his
men to the west bank of Long Lake near Kelly's
bluff — the company \vent South in September.
One or two companies occupied Kingston in
the winter of 1S62-3 and a detachment under
Lieut. O'Brien, was the last military organization
stationed at Forest City.
After the arrival of Capt. Petitt's company, the
Forest City boys devoted most of their time in
caring for personal property — stock, grain, &c.,
in different parts of the county and in which they
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. C)C
did good service. Tlie company was disbanded
by Gov. Ramsey on the 15th of October, 1S62.
While in active service and until disbanded, the
Government recognized and paid the officers and
men.
After the arrival of regular troops, many of our
men, knowing our organization to be a mere rope
of sand, pi'oposed to, and did go about their bus-
iness, endeavoring to get ready for winter — get
their families back — most of them had families
which had been broken up, all of which seemed a
very important duty.
On the 6th, Whitcomb met the writer in St.
Paul and informed him that he and a portion of his
command had "nominated a candidate for the
Legislature," the knowledge of which coming to
the ears of Gov Ramsey, he promptly ordered the
company to be disbanded.
This proceeding deeply offended our doughty
captain, who, on his return, took the orderly's book
and marked the word "deserted" against the names
of all his men, who were engaged in looking 'after
their own property.
Thirteen of the best men of the company were
thus marked, why or wherefore is unknown, un-
less the captain drawing pay for his entire com-
pany neglected to pay the deserters, an easy way
96 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTY.
to net about $300.00. One of the last raids of the
Indians in the county took place in August 1863.
Jesse V. Branham, sen. Wni. Kruger, Charles
Kruger and William Branham, one dog and two
horses, visited the farm of Wm. Kruger, eight
miles south of Forest City, for the purpose of
harvesting wheat.
The first night out, the men slept m the house,
the horses were picketed within a rod of the
house and dog stood sentinel — Kruger said he
could be trusted.
During the night a tremendous thunder storm
rent the skies, and the dog deserted his post and
returned to Forest City and two Indians ran oft'
with the horses — the trail run a due west course
passing Pipe Lake Station, when seventeen soldiers
took the trail and followed it past the Kandij'ohi
Lakes, overhauling the Indians about twenty miles
out — the horses were picketed and the red men
fast asleep.
Thinking to have more fun with them than
fighting — the soldiers surrounded the sleeping
Indians before waking them up.
As soon as the Indians discovered their posi-
tion they pitched in among the soldiers and came
very near whipping the crowd and died game,
and father Bi^anham says, the soldiers sclaped the
HISTORY OF MEEKEK COUXTV. Qh
Indians and left their bodies on the prairie. Fath-
er Branham has a poor opinion of "dogs" as a
picket guard, and still less o'f Indians as play-mates.
CHAPTER X.
A WILD WOMAN S HISTORY THE SLAYER OF HUN-
DREDS OF BEARS AND WILD-CATS.
HoNESDALE, Pa., July 20th, 1S76. — "There" said
Sheriff Spencer, as he pushed open the ponderous
door of one of the cells of the county jail in this
place, "There is a woman with a history."
On a low chair in a cell in the jail at Honesdale,
Pa., July 2oth, 1S76, sat a most singular looking
person. A round, wrinkled, sun-burned face,
small head crowned with thick, shaggy gray hair,
that fell down over and almost concealed the
blackest and sharpest of eyes; a slender body
clothed in scant and shabby female garb, and
lower limbs encased in tattered trousers. This
was the occupant of the cell — Lucy Ann Lolxlell
(98)
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 99
XEE Slater, 1:)ette]" known thereabouts as "the fe-
male hunter of Long Eddy."
About 4=; years ago a family named Loljdell
lived in Delaware county, N. Y., at what is now
the village of Long Eddy on the Delaware river
and Erie railway, then sparsely settled. Lumber-
ing was the main business of the settlers of the vi-
cinity. The Lobdells dwelt m a cabin in the woods
where a daughter, the subject of our sketch, was
born. Fyom the time this child was old enough
to walk she was a great favorite among the hardy
woodchoppers and raftsmen. They often took
her off to the logging camp and kept her there for
days at a time, and she early became inured to the
hardships of their life. The lumbermen in those
days were all good hunters, and always carried
their rifles with them. Before Lucy Ann was eight
years old ^they had taught her the use of the rifle,
and she soon became as good a shot as there was in
the settlement. At the age of twelve she could out-
shoot any of the men, and handled the ax with the
ease of an old chopper. Before she had reached
the age of sixteen she had killed nutnerous deer,
and an absence of two or three davs alone in the
woods was for her not an uncommon thing. She
once killed a full sized panther, and the hide of the
animal is now in the possession of an ex-sheriff of
g563i.6
lOO HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Wayne Co. Pa. Notwithstaning her masculine
tastes Lucy Ann's name, as a girl and woman,
was free from reproach. The breath of slander
never reached her, and she could have had her
choice of a husband from the most exemplary
young men in the vicinity. But she had no incli-
nation to marry and she rejected all offers.
A raftsman named Henry Slater came into the
settlement abouti 850. He formed the acquaint-
ance of Lucy Ann and to the surprise of everybody,
they were married Slater proposed to liucy Ann.
and she told him that they would shoot at a mark
with a rifle. If he beat her shots she would marry
him, if not she would stay with her parents. The
trial of skill took place and Slater was victorious.
Slater proved a worthless scape-grace and neg-
lected and abused his wife. A year after they
were married Mrs. Slater gave birth to a daughter.
Before the child was two weeks old Slater desert-
ed both child and wife, leaving them in des-
titute circumstances. Slater never returned, but
was occasionally heard of in New York city, and
on the Hudson river, a worthless, drunken, vaga-
bond.
The sorrowing wife wentiback to her parents,
and after two years spent in trying to get along
and maintain herself respectably by doing wo-
man's work, but with poor success, she laid aside
i
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. lOI
the apparel of her sex, donned men's clothing, and
taking her rifle went into the woods to earn a liv-
ing for herself and child.
For eight or ten long years she roamed the for-
ests of Sullivan and Delaware counties, in New
York, and Wayne and Pike in Pennsylvania, and
spent two years in Meeker county Minnesota.
She had cabins in various places, and would
visit the old home about once a year, and only ap-
peared in the settlements and villages to sell her
game and furs and to procure ammunition.
On one of her visits to her child when it was
about four years old, her parents complained of
having its care on their hands. She therefore took
it away and placed it in the Delhi poor-house, and
left her old stamping ground for New York and
thence up the Hudson river — still in men's apparel
— and, strange to say passed and repassed her
husband on the Hudson River railroad without
being recognized by him, her disguise was so com-
plete.
From Albany she passed west over the Central
New York, and finally turned up in Minnesota,
and says she taught three singing schools on the
way, to provide means of transportation.
She spent a short time in St. Paul, where she
made but few acquaintances and among them was
I02 HISTORY OP MEEKKR COUNTY.
an Edwin Gribbel, who had' some dealings with
her, but Edwin hadn't the remotest suspicion that
she was a female, or he would perhaps have been
less free with her. Gribble had reason to know
that Lucy Ann was somewhat eccentric, not onl>
on account of the wildness of her tastes, but in the
way she dressed, her costume in the summer of 1856
having consisted of a pair of calico pants, a calico
coat and a calico vest and hat. In this cool but
rather odd suit of clothes, Lucy Ann hung around
for some time waiting for a chance to make a
strike. At this time Gribble occupied a claim on
the upper shore of Lake Minnetonka, near Cook's
and adjoining him was a claim which had been
jumped by a man, who employed Lobdell to oc-
cupy it in his absence, and both of whom spent
some time together upon that claim. The claim-
jumper, however, finally disappeared, leaving Lob-
dell alone to watch his land. This was about the
time that Gribble and Lucy got pretty thick, tramp-
ing together through the woods in pursuit of
game, and sleeping together under the same blank-
et when they woed the gentle goddess of slum-
ber under the umbrageous forest trees around
Minnetonka. But Gribble didn't dream that Lu-
cy was a lone female, and hence he felt that his
familiarity with her entitles hini to a suspension
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. IO3
of public opinion until he can prove his innocence
of any evil intention. Well, after hunting with
Lucy for a while, and pleasing her with the elo-
quence of his tales of love, and his experiences as
a jurist and politician, Lucy got tired of waiting
for the return of the claim-jumper and also of
Gribble's pretty talk, and expressed an inclination
to strike out further into the wilderness. And
rio-ht here, Gribble did a handsome stroke of bus-
iness. The claimant of the land failing to appear,
it naturally became the property of the occupant,
and Gribble thereupon purchased Lucy's right to
the soil, and gave her that seventy-five dollar rifle,
which she can-ied for so many years afterwards in
consideration of a quit-claim to the land, which
she made out and transferred to Gribble. Then Lu-
cy with Gribble's gun on her shoulder, set out for
Meeker County.
She had the I75 rifle, and spent her first winter
(1856-7) with another person both in male attire,
on the old Kandiyohi town-site on the north of
Kandiyohi lakes.
The two were employed to reside on and thus
hold possossion of the new town-site, by the Min-
neapolis proprietors. Her companion spent the
winter with her, but never for a moment suspected
that he was wintering with a woman.
lO-l- HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
At times, when provisions fell short, thev were
compelled to live on squirrels for their meat.
And on one occasion, her companion was com-
pelled to visit the Mississippi river settlements for
supplies, and before his return, she, failing to find
the necessary squirrel, relied upon those brought
in by the cat, her only companion, for supplies —
the cat furnished squirrels when the rifle could not
reach them.
The last we heard of "puss" he was in the care
of Noah White, of Kandiyohi countv; he was a fa-
vorite in that settlement for a number of \ears and
died of old age.
The Summer of '57 Lucy Ann appeared in Man-
annah, boarding a short time in a place, doing
chores, chopping wood, hunting, washing dishes,
etc., for her board. She was handy at anything:
those with whom she was acquainted seemed to
enjoy her company — her male apparel often re-
quiring her to sleep in close proximity with others
of the male gender — but with no indiscretion and
with no suspicion that she was other than what
appeared on the surface.
For the purpose of completing her disguise she
had assumed the name of La-Roi Lobdell.
She ever seemed well pleased with her disguise,
and the difficulty that would naturally interpose
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 105
in resuming, without loss of character, her natural
and appropriate raiment probably induced her to
continue the deception. She claimed to have as-
sumed this disguise, originally in order to better
get away from home, without detection by a drunk-
en husband.
• vShe had but little money and was a splendid hunter
and was offensive to none, and, as before remarked,
was good company and a "hale fellow well met"
with all the young people in the neighborhood,
committing no indiscretions.
In the summer of 1S5S, by accident. "Satan,
with the aid of original sin,'' discovered and ex-
posed her sex. The blue code of Connecticut
was consulted, and the law was invoked to purge
the community of the scandal.
The county attorney, Wm. Richards, now of the
city of New Yoik, filed an information against
Mrs Slater before John Robson, Esq. J. P., then
contesting the jurisdiction of this county with J.
B. Atkinson, Esq., as judge of the only court we
had, alleging "that, whereas, one Lobdell, being a
woman, falsely personates a man, to the great
scandal of the community, and against the peace
and dignity of the State of Minnesota," and asked
that she be dealt with according to law, that so
pernicious an example might not be repeated in
fo6 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
this land of bteady habits. U. S. Willie, Esq., a
young lawyer from Virginia, then residing at For-
est City, appeared for the prisoner, and A. C.
Smith as counsel.
The plea of xot guilty was interposed, and
the legal evidence to prove the necessary fact
could not easily be obtained, and was left in doubt,
and the court, after taking the case under advi=e-
me it, finally ruled that the right of females to
"wear the pants'" had been recognized from the
time of Justinian, and that the doctrine was too
well settled to be upset in the case at bar, and
Mrs. Slater was therefore discharged.
This denoument had the effect to discredit
her in the settlement, subjecting her to insult
from the vicious on every hand. She became de-
ranged pending the proceedings, and, as it were,
an outcast in society — an object of commiseration
and sympathy, and soon thereafter a public charge.
On recovering from the mental shock, she
expressed a willingness to return to her family
and friends, but had no means save her rifle,
and nobody in the settlement able to purchase
that.
Mrs. Slater was finally sent home at the expense
of Meeker county, under the direction of Capt. A.
D. Pierce, then of Manannah.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. IO7
Soon thereafter Capt. Pierce recei^-ed a letter
from Mrs. Slater's parents, thanking him and the
county most heartily for their kindness in returning
her to her friends.
In 1S59 she again appeared on her old stamping
ground, "the basket," and still in male attire We
conclude this novel romance in the language of the
New York Times:
She at times would recount her experiences in
the forest, and asserted that in the eight years she
had killed i 50 deer, eleven bears, numerous wild-
cats and foxes, besides trapping hundreds of mink
and other fur bearing animals. vShe had hand-to
hand contests with both wounded deer and bear,
as ugly seams and scars upon her body amply tes-
tified. For two or three years after her return she
led a mendicant sort of life through the valley, and
finally entered the poor-house at Delhi, to which
she had sent her child several years previously,
This child, however, had some time before been
taken out of the institution by a farmer of Da-
mascus township, Wayne county, Pennsylvania,
named David Fortman, and given a home at his
house.
In the spring of 1865 a young woman was let off
an Erie railway passenger train at Basket station,
or Long Eddy. She could not pay her fare any
Io8 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
further, and said she had no particular point to
which she was going. She gave her name as Mrs.
Wilson, and said she had been deserted by her
husband at Jersey City, where she had been living
for some months. He was an employe of the Erie
railway company, and had eloped with the daugh-
ter of the lady with which they boarded. Mrs.
Wilson said that she was the dausfhter of hiorhh"
respectable parents, named Perry of Lynn, Mas^ ,
and that she had run away from home with, and
married James Wilson, her parents having opposed
the match. The station agent and others at Bas-
ket station kindly offered to make up a purse for
the unfortunate woman, and send her back to her
parents, but she declined the offer, saying she was
ashamed to meet them, and did not wish them to
know of her whereabouts. She was in feeble
health, and fearing that she might become a bur-
den on strangers, she went to Delhi, and entered
the poor-house.
Lucy Ann Slater was still an inmate of the
almshouse, and a singular attachment had sprang
up between her and the new comer, Mrs. Wilson,
probally owing to the similarity of cause which
had forced them to become paupers. The follow-
ing year both of them left the county house, and
nothing was heard of ci'.her of them for two years.
iiis'ion'S' OF meekp:r county. 109
In the summer of 1S6S a party of fishermen discov-
erd two strange persons living in a cave in Barrett
township, Moni'oe county, Pa. Tliey were a man
and woman. Soon thereafter there appeared in
one of the villages a tall, gaunt man, carrying a
rifle and leading a half-grown bear cub by a string
tied about his neck. The man was bare-headed
and his clothing was torn and dirty. Accompany-
ing him was a woman about twenty-five years old,
shabbily dressed, but giving evidence of more in-
telligence than the man, who called himself Rev.
Joseph Lobdell, and said that the woman was his
wife. As they walked about, the man delivered
noisy and meaningless ''sermons," declaring that
he was a prophet of the new dispensation, and
that the bear had been sent him by the Lord to
guard him in the wilderness. For two years these
vagrants wandered about that portion of the coun-
try, living in caves, and subsisting on roots, berries,
and game killed by the man. x'Vt last they were
arrested and lodged in jail at Stroudsberg, where
they were kept several weeks. While in jail the
discovery was made that they were both women.
Subsequently the authorities learned that they
belonged to Delaware county, N. Y., and thither
they were sent. This pretended man and wife
were Lucy Ann Slater and Mrs. Wilson, who
no HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTY.
had been leading this vagabond life for four
yeai's.
In the meantime Mary Ann Slater, the daugh-
ter of Lucy Ann, who had been taken from the
Delhi almshouse in 1859 or i860, had found an ex-
cellent home, and had grown up to be an intelli-
gent and attractive young woman. A young man
named Stone lived near by with his widowed moth-
er, whom he supported. He loved Mary Ann,
and being a worthy and promising 3 outh, the fos-
ter father of the girl saw no I'eason to oppose a
match between her and the widow's son. The
widow, however, was so strongly set against her
son marrying the young lady that the whole neigh-
borhood wondered. A number of young men in
the neighborhood were jealous of Stone, and one
dark night they waylaid Mary Ann. The outrage
drove her almost insane, but Stone's affection was
undiminished. He still pressed his claim for her
hand. At length when their marriage seemed
certain, Mrs. Stone revealed a state of affairs
which fully accounted for her opposition. She
told her son that she was not a widow, and that
Henry Slater was his father as well as the father
of Mary Ann.
Lucy Ann Slater and Mrs. Wilson again Ici't the
Delhi poor house, and have ever since been livmg
4
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. Ill
in caves and cabins in the woods. The former is
at times entirely deranged. All last winter they
lived in a cave ten miles from Honesdale, but they
divided their time between Monroe county and this.
Lucy Ann wandered into this village the other
day, and out of common decency she was arrested,
and was placed in jail where we found her
at the commencement of this chapter.
CHAPTER XL
DR. FREDERICK NOAH RIPLEY.
Dr. Ripley arrived at Siiakopee, Scott county,
Minn., m September 1853, and resided at that
place, boarding at the "Warren House" during the
years 1853-4.
He came from New York city, where he was
educated, and where he left a mother and an inten-
ded wife.
In 1855, he first made his appearance in the
small village of Minneapolis — a slightly built man.
ot refined and gentlemanly appearance; possessing
copious stores of useful and instructive informa-
tion; richly endowed with all the natural gifts of
an enlarged mind and liberal understanding; full
(112)
JItSTOKV OK MEEKER COUNTV. II^
(jf high hope!s and vigorous promise, who in his
earlv manliood had left the land of his birth to seek
that of his adoption in the far west.
He had l>een induced to take this step by a col-
lege class-mate, at that time a practicing young
lawyer in Minneapolis — the late Hon. D. M. Han-
son.
Dr Ripley was a young and talented physician
but recently graduated from a celebrated medical
institution in the east, and was looking through the
west for the purpose of selecting a home, where
he could devote his entire time to the practice of
his profession.
About this time that portion of our Territory
now comprising Meeker and McLeod counties had
just been explored by a few citizens of Minne-
iipolis, and considerable excitement existed in tjjie
village, in regard to the favorable reports made by
the pioneerb in relation to their visit west of the
Big-woods.
The doctor was strongly recommended to make
a visit to the new -discovered region, to look up ;i
claim and select a home, and in doing so made up
his mind to settle — expecting to locate either at
Forest City or on Cedar Lake, in the county of
Meeker.
Arrangements were made to have the supplies
114 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
necessary for the ensuing winters use, stored at
Forest City, at the same tnne the Dr. with one
John McClelland now Register of Deeds in Beck-
er county, were to remain on the claim at Cedar
Lake, where they had established their camp for
the winter.
Ripley and McClelland left camp for Forest
City, for supplies on the first day of March 1S56 —
a distance of 18 miles.
It was a delightful morning — the sun shone
brightly and the snow was melting fast till 9, A. M.
when a gentle breeze from the north-west started
up — in a short time clouds began to appear and by
12 M. a full-grown bli^jzard was upon them.
They traveled as near a north-west course as
they could calculate, until dark when they stopped
in a small popple grove; gathering a pile of dry
sticks, with which they started a fire, they camped
for the night — imagination will tell how they
spent the night, without food or blankets, and
the thermometer down to 20 below zero and the
wind blowing a hurricane, their only occupation
was to hunt wood and keep up the fire till morn-
ing when they again started out, as was supposed
in a direct course for Forest City and traveled until
about 9 o'clock a. m. through snow from one to
three feet deep striking Cruw River, but whether
FilSTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. II :;
above or below Forest City they could not tell.
and after a search for several hours both up and
down stream the Doctor became discouragfed and
both started to go back whence they came — this
was about two p. m. — by this time the storm had
abated and the sun came out just before night.
About dark they accidently came to the place
where they had camped the night before, but to
their great disappointment the fire had gone out and
their few remaining matches were found to be wet,
they had no fire and as they started out without
food, in anticipation of getting through to Forest
City the same night, hunger and cold told on them
terribly. The Dr. was badly chilled — both walked
the grove for some time but concluded to strike
out for camp as it was quite as easy to walk on
the prairie as in the timber.
Ripley showed signs of fatigue and quite fre-
quently wanted to stop and rest — McClelland in-
sisted it would not do to stop as he would freeze
and McClelland was already aware that his own
feet were partially frozen.
Ripley was evidently freezing as at every step
he seemed to get weaker and less able to pro-
ceed and finally fell down in the snow — McClel-
land helped him up and led him on for some dis-
tance, until Ripley said "Mc. go ahead and if the
Il6 HISTORY OK MEEKER COUNTY.
teams have come into camp — have them come out
after me.
I McClelland very reluctantly left Ripley and
made as rapid steps for camp as possible, knovvinj^
full well that he was takinoj a last farewell of the
good man on earth.
McClelland left Ripley about half a mile from
what is now called Lake Ripley.
The Dr. seems to have wandered back to the
grove, where his remains were 'found in the
. April following by Mr. William S. Chapman (now
of California.)
McClelland left Ripley about 8 o'clock .v. m. of
the third day out and seven miles from camp.
McClelland had a hard days work and got into
camp about sun down with his feet badly frozen,
where he lay nineteen days! before the ex-
pected team arrived. Dr. Ripley was thirty-two
years old.
When McClelland was discovered in camp, he
was in a dreadful state of prostration, was imme-
diately removed to Shakopee and both legs ampu-
tated above the knee.
Dr. Ripley was of pleasing address and gentle-
manly manners, below the medium height, light
hair, blue eyes and talented — and had he lived
could not fail to have made a valuable citizen.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 117
He belonj^ed to the Masonic order — was an hon-
or to the craft and was beloved by all who knew
him.
His remains have not been, but should be re-
moved to the cemetery at an early day.
Previous to Dr. Ripley's pitching his tent west of
the woods in Meeker county, he had pre-empted
the East half of the South-west quarter and South
west quarter of the South-west quarter of section
30 and and Lots 7 and S of section 31-1 16-22-
This pre-emption bears date October iS, 1855 —
the public sale taking place October 24th. 1S55.
CHAPTER XII
CHURCH HISTORY PRKSK VTEK I AX CHIHCH.
The first Presbyterian Church and society or-
o-anized in the county was at Forest Citv bv Rev.
J. C. Whitney, vvlio came to Forest City in the
spring of 185S and organized a Presbyterian so-
ciety Sept. 25th, 1859 and styled "The trustees of
the Westminister Presbyterian society of Forest
City."
The first trustees were I. C. Dehnater. Richard
Pool, A. C. Smith. J. W. Gnswold and A. W.
Angier.
Tlic onlv one of these men now remaining in
the county is A. C. Smith.
(118)
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I I9
In connection with this organization Rev. J. C.
Whitney labored until the fall of 1S62.
Lots for a church edifice were donated by the
Town Company, and timber hauled on to the
"round.
Subsequently, in the fall of 1862 these timbers
were used in building the stockade for defence
from the Indians.
The next organization was at Greenleaf in Sep-
tember or October 1866 — Rev. J. C. Harding was
Jocated there as a missionary, November 1866,
and preached his first sermon Nov. 25th, 1S66.
Society organized Feb. 17th 1S66, in connection
with the St. Paul Presbytery.
The first Trustees were Henry Hill. Wm. H.
Greenleaf, James Gilpatrick, Dana E. King and
John Curry — name and style "The first Presbyter-
ian Church of Greenleaf." Trustees elected Nov.
4th, 1 868.
In July 1866, Dana E. King presented the so-
ciety with lot 12, A. C. Smith with lot 11, and
Judson A. Brink with lots 9 and 10 on being
paid $25.00.
This gave the society four lots on which a house
was erected costing between $1,500 and $2.000 —
of this $300 was furnished by the "church erection
board."
I30 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Rev. Mr. Harding labored here till 1S70.
In 1868 Rev'nds D. B. Jackson, W. C. Harding
and J. H. Hunter were appointed by the St. Paul
Presbytery, in session at St. Cloud in April of
that year, to organize a church at Kingston.
Church organized May 28th, 186S — name and
style of, "The first Presbyterian church of Kings-
ton."
The Society never become a corporate body
and did not erect any house of worship.
Rev. Mr. Jackson labored here until the springs
of 1871.
The next and last Presbyterian church organ-
ized in the countyjto this date ( 1S76} is at Litchfield.
This town was located in 1869 by the St. Paul
& Pacific Rail Road Company — on the line of its
road and near the geographical center of the
county.
Rev. D. B.Jackson, preached the first sermon
August 15th, 1869 in an unfinished 7x9 school
house without either doors or windows.
The Church at Litchfield was organized Jan.
2nd. 1S70, by a committee from St. Paul "Presby-
tery" consisting of Rev'nds D. C. Lyon, J. W.
Farris and D. B. Jackson.
Church and Society organized under the statute
March loth, 1870 — name and style, " First Presby-
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 131
terian Cliurch and Society of Litchfield." The
following- were the original members of thi:^
church, viz:
Mr. Achille N. Grenier, Mrs. Eusebia N. Gren-
ier, Miss Rachel Amelia Grenier, Miss Isabella
Grenier, Mr. Henry Hill, Mrs. Mary L. Hill, Mr.
Henry Wilson, Mrs. Martha Gordon and D. B.
Jackson.
Of the above, at this writing (1876) A. N.
Grenier, died in St. Paul — Mrs. Grenier is now re-
siding in Paris, France — Miss Amelia married to
Mr. Mathron, and resides in Marseilles, France.
Isabella is the wife of Dr. Geo. W. Weisel and
resides at Grand Rapids Michigan, Henry Hill is
residing in the Black Hills (so called) while Mrs.
Hill resides at Granite Falls, Yellow Medic
County Minnesota — Henry Wilson died in Miss-
ouri, and Rev. D. B.Jackson resides in Black Riv-
er Falls Wis.
All gone but one! Such are the changes of six
years. What may it be during the next centur\ .'
July 25th, 1870 the St. Paul and Pacific Rail
Road Company deeded the lots on which the
edifice now stands, and the present building was
erected during the years 1870-71 — whole cost over
$4.000, — of this sum one thousand was donoted
by a lady in the East; five hundred by the
132 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
church erection board $500 procured through the
efforts of D. B. Jackson and two thousand by citi-
zen subscriptions.
The bell for the church was obtained during
1872 — the money being raised by an excursion to
St. Paul. The party came near destruction, as
the train was partially thrown from the track, and
one coach badly demoralized:
An instrument of music was on the reSr coach
and most of the party were in that coach and
thus providentially saved from what would other-
wise have been a sad disaster.
The sofa was furnished as a present from James
Campbell Esq. of Hartford Conn.
The names of the different clergymen officiating
in this church to this time are Rev. D. B.Jackson,
W. C. Harding, Prescot Fay, A. J. Buel, and John
S. Sherrill.
Total present membership of the church 71,
something over one-half still reside in the county.
PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
Rev. T. G. Crump commenced holding Epis-
copal services in the Masonic Hall in Litchfield in
July 1870.
At the time of the morning service on Sunday
the 5th, and 12th, days, of March 1S71 notice was
publicly given for a meeting of the male mem-
123 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
bers of the Protestant Episcopal Church and con-
gregation to be held in the Masonic Hall in Litch-
field Saturday evening the i8th day of March a.
D. 1871.
Rev. T. G. Crump presided at such meeting and
D. E. Potter was chosen secretary.
A permanent organization \a as had, the foow
iug persons were elected church wardens and
vestry men.
J. C. Braden Sr. Warden, C. H. Strobeck Jr
Warden.
Vestry— D. E. Potter. G. H. Chapman, H. G.
Rising, J. M. Mitchell. B. O. Esping, W. S.' Brill
and J. M. Waldron
Rev. T. G. Crump, Rector.
Four of the se\ en first vestrymen are now gone
from the county.
Present Wardens and Vestry, James C. Braden,
Chas. H. Strobeck, Wardens.
N. A. Viren, S. H. Wood, P. Ekstrom, F. E
Bissel, W. S. Brill. S. A. Plumley, Vestiy.
H. Stevens, Treas. J. H. Morris Sec.
The lots on which the Rectory now stands were
the gift ot Herman Trott Esq. Land Commission-
er, and other parties connected with the St. Paul
& Pacific Rail Road Company.
The lots on which the church edifice and parish
124 HISTORY OF MEEKEE{ COUNTY.
school house stand were the gift of J. C. Braden.
Mrs Ellen Auchmuty of New York gave $4000.
toward the erection of the church edifice and Airs.
E. D. Litchfield of London England gave $2,000.
No other Episcopal church organization has ev-
er been perfected in the county.
METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
Rev. John Robson preached the first sermon in
Forest City, November 1856, (see page 34 of this
]>ook.)
Mr. Robson continued to preach in Forest City
during the wmter of 1S56-7 and through the sum-
mer of 1857. In May 1857, Wm. Walker, organ-
ized a Sunday school, Wait H. Dart Superinten-
dent.
Rev. Thomas Hai wood was the first preacher
on the Forest City circuit, in 1857. Rev. S. F.
Sterritt, ot Monticello, Presiding Elder.
First Quarterly Meeting held at Kingston, Oc-
tober loth, 1 85 7.
Official members present. Rev. S. F. Sterritt, P.
E. Thomas Harwood, P. E.and E. H. Whitney, L.
E. and B. Lyford. Stewards, E. H. Whitney, John
Robson W. H. Dart, R. M. Eastman, and B. Ly-
ford.
J. W. Griswold Recording Steward.
Second Qiiarterly Meeting held at the house of
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I25
John Robson in Forest City Jan. 25th 185S.
Rev. C. C. Kidder supplied the Forest City cir-
cuit in 185S.
September 4th, of this year a legal organization
was had, and a board of Trustees appointed con-
sisting of Messrs John W. Griswold, John Rob-
son, Wait H. Dart, E. H. Whitney and Rufus M.
Eastman.
To be known and styled as a ''Board of Trustees
to hold in trust certain church projDerty located in
the Tovs^n of Forest City, county of Meeker and
State of Minnesota."
Said organization was made a matter of record,
in the Registry of Deeds in said county in Book
B. of mortgages page 326.
1861-2 Rev. S. Chubbuck occupied the Forest
City curcuit.
Mr. Chubbuck was at Forest City at the time
of the Indian outbreak and while his connection
with conference forbade his uniting with our
'irregular" volunteer guards — he nevertheless
shouldered the musket and did as good service as
any man in Meeker County, until the meeting of
conference when duty required him to leave. In
the hours of danger Mr. Chubbuck was one of the
coolest calmest men we had — showing no fear in
the discharge of duty — brave but not rash, a man
120 HisioH^ ov mki:ki:k c(>l•^■T^ .
of few woinU. ho was a meilcl ot a christian i(en-
tlc'inan.
Aii»;iisl .|.th, 1862 a new Boanl o\ Trustees was
appointed consisting of Messrs jolm \V. GnswoUl.
Wait M. Dart, E. II. Whitney, Henry Keech and
Allen (-ireen.
In iS(): l\i.\. F. Berlin ureached at Forest Citv
occasionally.
In 1S64, :ie\ . l.e\i (ilcason performed snn-
ilar service.
In conseq>;otKe of the Indian War. there was
verv little done hy this church u-v two or three
Aears and no reports of i ^terest made.
Under date o( iS'04-5 the Methodist Episcopal
record contains the t'ollowinL:; entry:
"Conference year 1804-5 I^<- ^ • ^I- S- Harrinian
walked the Clearwater circuit w hen it was lari^e
enough to kill a horse."
No recorils for 1S6:; except that the Clearwater
circuit was divided and the Forest City circuit
ve-eslablish.eil.
In 1866 Rev. Jesse Smith and J. W. Stunty.
Mipplied the circuit.
l86~. Mr. Stuntz continued at Forest City.
1868. Rev. Mr. Fasio- occupied the ground.
1S60. Rev. ThadeusJ. Woodworth was appoint-
ed to the Forest City circuit, then composed of
HISTORY OF MEEKEK C(n;N'rV. 12 7
Forest City, Kingston, Silver Creek and Pleasant
Lake. Qiiarterly meeting at Kingston Nov. 22nd.
1870, Mr. Woodworth continued in charge. Rev.
Charles Ciriswoid Presiding Elder. We find the
following entrv in the church record: "\-oted to re-
release J. W. Griswold' from, and appoint Judge
Smith to the Board of Trustees of the Forest City
church property — a board of Trustees was ap-
pointed to hold church property in Litchfield —
Rev. Charles Griswold, lost the report.
The first Qiuirterly Meeting held at Litchfield,
was Nov. 28th, 1869.
In 1870, the name of the circuit was changed to
"Litchfield" and Rev. Mr. Fnsigwas left in charge.
187 1 -2 no records.
1873, Rev. Isaac H. Riddick was located at
Litchfield, also for the years 1874-5.
1876, Rev. Samuel Wood was appointed to this
station but soon resigned in consequence of bad
health.
Present membership of the Methodist Episco-
pal church 62.
The church edifice at Litchfield cost $3,000 of
which $500, was donated by the Remington's of
Ilion, New York, and the lots donated by Smith
D. King. The house was erected in 1873 under
the supervision of Rev. Mr. Copp.
IZS lllsrOKV OK MEEK.EK COISIV.
CHKlSriAN CIHItCll.
This cluircli was ovgaiii/cd in 1871 with a incm-
l)ership of 38 persons, by Elder L. Y. Bailey.
Trustees — Chauncy Butler, (i. B. Lyon, V. H.
Harris.
Membership in 1876, about 40.
Present otlicers Chauncy Butler, S. W. Leavett,
y. H. Harris.
The names of llu clergymen ofbciating in this
church, Rev. L. V. Bailey, F. Grant. John Ains-
worth and J. McReynolds.
Sunday school number^ 50 chddren.
This church owmis two lots of grouiul and has
a church edifice costing $4.000 — no del t.
Mr. Ovid Butler of Indianapolis Ind. contribu-
ted .$1,000 toward the erection of the house.
.SWEDISH .MKrHOUIST EPISC >1'AI- CllflUll OK
Lire IIVlKI.l).
was organized April 14th, 1874.
Trustees — ^Jonas Peterson, Lewis Johnson, Peter
Hanson, Peter Palm and Lewis Swanson.
O.Gunderscni Presiding Elder, Swedish District
Minnesota.
Lewis Jt)hnson, Secretary.
The church edifice for this church was built in
187^, and cost about $2.000 — paid for by the con-
trrcjjation.
mscom oi' mkekkh covsrv. i2(j
KOMAN LAT1H>IAC CIIlfKII.
Was ortijanized nl Forest City, in the spiinj^ of
1866 by Rev. Father Minolf of St. Cloud.
The first sermon was preached in the sjjring of
1S58 at the house of John FlyniT l>y Rev. Father
Whitcomb of St. Cloud — the second by the same
person at the liouse ui' John Dougherty ;:i the
Town of Hawey.
A church edifice was erected in 1866, at Forest
City, costing $3.000 — individuals of all denomi-
nations generously contributed to its erection — size
40 by 60 feet.
The lumber ((jv this building was hauled over 40
miles l)y teams from (iilmaii's mills, beyond .St.
Cloud, by the meml)ers of the church.
Trustees in charge of the erection of the churrh :
Patrick Casey, John Dougherty, Sen. Daniel
Dougherty and M.J. Flynn. The society orgin-
ally embraced about fifty' families. Rev. Father
John Byrnes officiated in this church from 1867 to
1870 — Rev. Father Arthur Hurley, from 1870 to
1873 — Rev. Father Cahill from 1873 to 1875 '''"'
Rev. Father McDermott since.
Three hundred families now worship at this
church.
Present Trustees — Rev Father McDermott Prest.
Patrick Casey, Treas. M.J. Flynn Sec.
I-^O HISTORY OF MEEKEK COUNTY.
This house is not now half large enough, to ac-
commodate the congregation.
This completes the record of the different
chuches of this county to 1876.
CHAPTER XIII.
THE JUDICIAKV.
During the early period which our historic-
al reminicences extend, such a thing as a "Judi-
ciary" or any necessity for law, was unheard of
and unknown in the county.
No county was ever settled by a better set of
boys, and none submitted to the hardships of a
new country one hundred miles from cvilization
with better grace, and with less complaint than
those who first opened up Meeker County, and
remdeemed her soil from savage rule.
No law was required, the intelligence of the
settler=, their quietness and industry, and the ne-
cessity which every man was under, to attend to
132 HISTORY OF MEEKEK COUNTY.
his own business, left theii tht^ughts free from law
or necessity for law.
Like our Pilgrim fathers, when landing at Ply-
mouth— they regarded the "Decalogue" as both
"law and gospel," from the first discovery of the
prairie till the spring oi' 1858.
The first thing the settlers were considered good
for, was to be "taxed" — Law soon followed, and
Blackstone & Kent could bo found at any man's
door, who was willing to pay for it, and it was a.
little remarkable that among the first cases tried,
was one of "woman's right's," and which has been
already sufficiently described in chapter ten of this
book.
From the spring of 1858, we were blessed with
three courts — one presided over by Smith & Ev-
ans, under the supervision of Thomas A. Hen-
dricks, then commisioner of the General Land
Office, one known as the District Court, presided
over by Hon. E. O. Hamlin of St. Cloud, and
thirdly, the one of all others, presided over by
Judge Atkinson as J. P.
Early in the summer of 1S59 Col. Allen now of
the Merchants Hotel, St. Paul — not having much
to do at that time, bethought him to make a bus-
iness strike and came all the way from St. Antho-
ny to Forest Citv to pre-empt a quarter section of
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 1 33
tamarack swamp somewhere in back of St. An-
thony.
The Col. was able to furnish first class proofs of
settlement and Improvements, consisting of a "half
acre broke" — a chvelling house 12 feet square, one
story high made of logs, with double board floor
(i.e. one board with a hole bored through it) a
double pitch roof (i.e. one board on top of the
house, with some tar rubbed on jt) one door, (i. e.
a place where you could crawl out or in) and one
window with glass in it, (i.e. a hole between the
logs and a broken junc-bottle placed therein.)
The proofs were excellent, but just here the
witness seemed to be tender-toed about swearing
to the (then) requisite 30 days residence prior to
pre-emtion.
The Col. was fully equal to the emergency and
promptly produced witness No. 2, consisting of
about two-thirds ot a demijohn of Medicine, vul-
garly termed "brandy," and as he was quite anx-
ious to propitiate the judges, that the case might
the more easily "slide through" and with the same
patriotic motion that rail road men furnish free
passes to cheap legislators, he made us a present
of Demijohn and its unfinished contents.
It is needless to add that the pi'oofs were deemed
ample and complete, and the Col. returned to St.
134 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Anthony the owner of a "tamarack swamp," and
with a somewhat higher opmion of legal technic-
alities.
The Col. tells us that farm lately changed hands
for thirty thousand dollars.
The testimony of witness No. 2, was carefully
preserved and filed away in the store room, so as
not to tempt "loungers to sudden attacks" — requir-
ino- the use of suQh remedies, and to be brought
out only on * state occasions," or when visited by
governors, judges, rail road presidents &c.
Had Thomas A. Hendricks been here at the
time, he would probably — as in other cases — have
required all the proofs to be sent up.
The first Term of our District Court was to
have been held in the fall of 1S5S— Hon. E. O.
Hamlin Judge 4th Judicial District, but the roads
were so bad, the judge could not come to
time, and on the appointed day, the legal wisdom
of the county met in Judge Smith's back office —
then used as a store room — to wit, Wm. Richards
County Atty. (not then admitted to practice) T.
C. Jewett Sheriff; and Smith cSl Willie then con-
stituting the Bar Association.
Col. Allen's demijohn stood in an old candle-
box under the table, when Esquire Richards per-
. HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I35
emptorilly directed the sheriff to open and adjourn
the court, pursuant to law.
Jewett was inexperienced — never having done
anything of the kind before asked Richards what
he should say.
"Say after me, sir," says Richards.
"Proceed sir," says the Sheriff.
"'Ere ye 'ere ye 'ere ye," says Co. Atty.
"'Ere ye 'ere ye 'ere ye," says the sheriff, — "The
District Court for the County of Meeker is now
open — all persons having any business in this
court must appear and they shall be heard — God
save the Queen," says the county attorney.
•■D d if I'll do it sir" says the sheriff, "this is
a free country and you've got an old English form
that won't work here.
At this point in the ceremony Richards looked at
Willie, who had discovered the demijohn under the
table — had exploded the cork and elevated "the
substance of things hoped for," and obtained a
goodly portion of "the evidence of things unseen,"
and had lowered the same to half mast — and at
once with offended dignity, which none but those
who knew Richards could appreciate — enquired of
Willie what he was about.
"Oh ! nothing," says Willie, in his usual style,
and stroking his moistened mustache, — "go on with
136 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
your court, this is only the first informal call, ot
the calender, and ceremony is entirely unneces-
sary"— again flourishing the demijohn, as a barber
would cut a figure eight with his razor, and in its
descent securing another liberal portion of the "evi-
dence of things unseen."
It is needless to add, to those who knew Rich-
ards, that he left, in disgust, forgetting to adjourn
the court and it is not quite certain that that court
has ever been adjourned.
The first District Court held in Meeker county
was in October 1859— Hon. E. O. Hamlin Judge,
and was held in Judge Smiths office.
The bar consisting spiritually of Messrs Smith
& Willie — Materially of Geo. B. Wrights old draw-
ing board 3 feet by 7 — and the first case tried was
that of John Pfeifer vs Peter Steirne — and as the
case was reported in Harpers New Monthly
for Nov. 1 86 1, I give the substance of the report
from that work.
"When Meeker County, Minnesota, was new
before lawyers found their way out there, two
Dutchmen, Pfeifer and Steirne (brothers-in-law),
undertook to cheat Uncle Sam by pre-empt-
ing two claims with one cabin, each furnishing
half the lumber, the cabin to stand on the line be-
tween the two clamis. Before the claims were
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 137
pre-empted the brothers fell out. Steirne under-
took to carry away his half of the lumber, when
Pfeifer shot ^Steirne. Steirne complains of Pfeifer
for an assault with nitent to kill, and Pfeifer settles
up by giving Steirne a chattel mortgage on two
yoke of oxen (all the property either party had in
the world except a wife and several children e;ich.)
"When the mortgage came due Steirne takes the
cattle and Pfeifer replevied them, on the ground
that the mortgage w^as given to compound a felony
and was void.
"Maturing the mortgage, two pettifoggers ar-
rived at the county seat, one Smith, a frontier law-
yer and a notorious wag, and Willie, a clever
voung lawver from Western Virg-inia.
"Pfeifer having the actual possession of the oxen,
delivers one yoke to Smith for his fee, and Steirne,
having the cattle in expectancy, mortgaged one
yoke to Willie also to secure his fee.
"The case was tried by His Honor, E. O. Ham-
lin, then on the bench of the Fourth District, at
the October Term, 1859, at Forest City. Being
but one spare room in town, the court adjourned
to give the use of the room to the jury. About 1 1
p. M. jury sent for the Court and informed the
j.udge that there was no possibility of an agree-
ment. The judge thereupon instructed the sheriff
138 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
to take the jury to the tavern and give them a sup-
per and then shut them up again with the case.
"At 4 o'clock A. M. the jury sent for the Court,
and gave in a sealed verdict, and were discharged
from further attendance on the Court, with the
judge's thanks. When the court convened at 9 a.
M. the verdict was opened, and read as follows:
"Jury find for plaintiff, three cents damages.
("Signed) Geo. S. Sholes, Foreman.'"
Atkinson affirms that those supplies have not
yet been paid for.
The following is a list of the Jurors m this case.
Geo. S. Sholes Sen, A, B. Hoyt, John C. Scrib-
ner Alexander Lee. T. R. Webb, Thos. Dough-
erty A. C. Maddox, Sam'l L. Getchell, Geo. W-
Baird Edward Brown John Blackwell Charles
Duffy.
At this term of court Wm. Richards Esq.
county Attorney "nunc pro tunc", was admitted
to practice as an attorney and counsellor, on his
own motion, assuring the court that although an
Englishman, he was nevertheless a man of good
moral character, attached to the constitution and
the principles of a Republican Government,
and could prove it by all the boys in Jim's bar-
room— and as material was somewhat scarce for
lawyers west of the woods, trusted that his appli-
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I39
cation would be favorably considered. The
Judge casting a longing eye over the pau-
city of the Bar, remarked "did you ever" and di-
rected the clerk to "swear him in."
Thus much for the introductory history of the
District Court.
Something is due to our ''Supreme Court," pre-
sided over at times by Judges Butler, Ritchie, Geo.
Frid, Robson, Griswold, Atkinson, Stevens, Walk-
er, Campbell, Hutchins and a host of others.
Jurisdiction depended somewhat on who got hold
of the case first.
In 1859 a case came before Judge Ritchie of
Acton. Mark Piper and Nathan Butler acted as
attorneys.
Piper made a motion to "quash the summons"
on the ground that the letters, s. s. were not at-
tached to "The State of Minnesota Meeker Coun-
ty " _
This was a poser for Butler and his argument
therein was not the most lucid, but the motion was
overruled and judgment entered for PI' ft' for the
value of ont^ "Opossum supper" proved to have been
unfortunately eaten on some formei occasion
in the early history of the county by the defen-
dant.
Subsequently both attorneys enquired of us
140 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
what connection those magic letters had in the di-
agnosis of the case.
If we remember rightly we informed them
that the s. s. stood for -'simplicity simplified," refer-
ring to the "code'' and that no case could be pros-
ecuted without recognizing "the code" by the ad-
dition of the s. s.
The same summer we had a case before Hutch-
ins, J. P. of Kingston, in which our old friend Fitz-
gerald appeared as both client and counsel against
VIS, and moved to dismiss on the ground that the
justice had never given a bond, and as the justice
had quite forgotten whether he had or not, for-
bade any futher proceedings.
Fitzgerald came into court with a club two feet
long and size of a sled-stake — hence the sobriquet
"Shillala Fitzgerald" which he carried ever after to
the end of his days.
IniS63jewett sued Hoken Peterson for .I4.00
sheriffs fees in some former case. Hoken came to
us to see what we would defend him for, and war-
rant the case, and after an hours p irley, in which
we commenced on $3,000, secured on real estate,
we finally struck off the three ciphers and closed
a contract and sealed it at $3.
Jewett found out, by some means how the case
stood, and soon after meeting Hoken he offered to
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I4I
settle and pay his own costs for $2.75. Hoken
having an eye to finance, promptly settld'd, and by
not paying his lawyer anything, thereby saved 25
cents. Jewett would have found it a telling business
had the suit been before any one else but "Jim"
Atkinson, who always regarded the fee bill as the
"chief end of law," and mulched Jewett about six
dollars.
J. B. Atkinson, Esq. was chief justice of Meek-
er county most of the time from 1S58 to 1S70, usu-
ally re-elected at any time, when he saw a major-
ity in his favor — his term of office never expiring
when his party was in a minority!
His jurisdiction was extensive — never governed
by imaginary or isothermal lines.
His District was bounded East by the big-
woods, South by the Minnesota river, West by
Big Stone Lake and Ncrth by Sitting Bull's camp.
When the summons was disregarded, a warrant
was dispatched, and the fellow always came.
The judge was easily fatigued into granting
short adjournments, particularlv when both par-
ties and all their witnesses were boarding at his
hotel. On one occasion two parties, one man and
one woman were arrested for an assault and bat-
tery. Two days were spent in trying to prove the
case against the man while the testimony clearly
1^2 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
\
showed the complainant was the guilty party.
The court, nevertheless, imposed a fine of five
dollars on the defendant who was perfectly good,
while county orders were worth but 30 cents on
the dollar and the court was bound to have pay
for his time against a responsible party.
Fine, $5.00; Costs, $45.00. taxed up on both
sides and included in the judgement.
The next morning the woman appeared in
court without counsel whereupon F. Belfoy (who
had prior to this time settled in the County,) re-
fused to appear for the prosecution and the wom-
an fought the complainant, flaxed him out, and
was discharged.
Once only, in our recollection did judge Atkm-
son find himself at the wrong end of the 'judicial
nippers."
The circumstance grew out of the Indian War.
Jewett was a member of the organization
termed by the Adjutant General ''Irregular Volun-
teer Militia" but at Forest City, for brevity, styled
the "Guerrilla Guards."
Jewett had not answered roll call for some days
owing evidently to indisposition, inclining that
way. Whitcomb was captain and our judge first
Lieut, a corporals guard was dispatched for Jew-
ett and he was somewhat unceremoniously led by
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
'43
the collar from his house to company quarters
and kept under guard over night.
On the 8th, of October Smith filed his com-
plaint with Judge Griswold, setting forth that
\Vm. Branham, Geo. W. Waggoner and Cornelius
McGraw did on the 7th day of the same month
"wilfully and without lawful authority" come un-
bidden into the dwelling house of deponent and
seized deponent by the arms and dragged him
therefrom."
On this complaint a warrant was issued by
Judge Griswold returnable forthwith at the office-
oi A. C. Smith,, who appeared as prosecutor, and
Judson A. Stanton was appointed to execute the
warrant.
The "Guerrilla Guards" consisted of about 35
men and boys, while Capt. Pettit was now sta-
tioned here with a full company of U. S. soldiers
Apprehending difficulty in making the arrest at
Whitcombs quarters. Judge Griswold had made
a call on Capt. Pettit of which the following is a
copy.
To Capt. G. F. Pettvt:
Co. B. 8th, Regiment, Minn. Vol's.
'^Sir: — Circumstances are such as to compel me
to issue a warrant against, and to deal with, accord-
ing to law, one Wm. Branham, Geo. W. Wag-
144 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
goner and Cornelius McGraw for a gross breach
of the peace, as is alleged.
Circumstances are also such as, to render it
more than probable that said warrant cannot be
duly served without the aid of the military arm of
the State.
You are therefore, directed and required to ren-
der to the special officer in charge of the execution
of said warrant, such military assistance as he may
need for the the faithful discharge of his dutv.
Respectfully, J. W. GRISWOLD.
Justice Peace, M. C. M.
Stanton thought he could arrest the boys with-
out help — by others, it was thought doubtful — the
sequel will show that Stanton had made most
proficiency in the study of human nature.
He went to Whitcombs quarters and seperately
whispered to the culprits, that Smith had a basket
of apples at his office and would like to treat hi?
friends and had sent him to invite a few of them,
following close behind them, as they passed into
the office — Stanton cooly locked the door — drew
forth the warrant and in his inimitable suttering
style, respectfully informed them that they were his
prisoners.
At this moment Judge Griswold sat at the head
of the table "looking more law" than any Lord
Coke ever dreampt of, — Smith at the foot with
the "code" under his arm, and Capt. Pettit with
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I45
Lieuts. HoUister and Shaw on either side in full
uniform, evidently the most dignified tribunal ever
assembled in the county.
When Stanton's "ruse" was understood by the
company present, order for a time was difficult to
be preserved.
For certain reasons, in connection with the rest
of Whitcombs boys, Stanton soon had business at
Clearwater, and the court assigned the prisoners to
the keeping of "Uncle Ike Delamatter," whose age
and venerable looks were sure to protect him from
insult.
Whitcomb and Atkinson defended the prison-
ers bravely, but the judge held them to bail for
their appearance at the next term of the District
Court to answer to an indictment for false impris-
onment. The case has not yet been disposed of,
and so far as we know, the prisoners are yet in
the legal custody of "Uncle Ike. "
Some deny the correctness of this report, and
we confess to two strong reasons why it might
well be doubted — first the known fact that Judge
Atkinson was never before found at the pinching
end of the judicial nippers and secondly this was
the only occasion known in the history of the
county, when Jewett wasat all backward, or need-
146 HISTORY OF XfEEKER COUNTY.
ed any help, in getting into a muss !
Legal proceedings in the county could be re-
counted to most any extent and perhaps with some
degree of interest, but the printer reminds us that
our book is about large enough, and we will be
compelled to desist. In many of the cases the
udicrous predominate and while the old saw
holds good that —
"A little nonsense now and then,
Is relished by the best of men-"
We are reminded that it is not quite safe to go
in for too much of it. Kandiyohi county was at-
tached to Meeker for judicial purposes from 1857
to 1870 and we have a quantity of judicial and oth-
er "nuts to crack" at the expense of that county,
but we must desist, as we do not like to depri.ve
Kandiyohi of her own future history.
The first person ever sentenced to the Peniten-
tiary from this county was a man by the name of
Roberts in 1869 for twenty-two months — Judge
Vanderburgh presiding — Roberts thanked the
Judge cordially for the brevity of the time fixed, and
hoped he (the judge) would call and see him if he
ever came to Stillwater!
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. 147
Populaiion of Sleeker County.
Ill ISOO 92S|IIn 1S70 6 090
In 1S62 at time of outbreak, 1.200| In 1875 s'oSO
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148
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
The area of land in Meeker County is 381,588 ac.
Deducting 81,588 acres for timbor and meadow
lands, and we have 300,000 acres for cultivation.
From the foregoing table we find, in 1875,
32.469 acres in grain crops of all kinds and pota-
toes, producing 864,208 bushels. At this rate
this County has the capacity, when fully settled
up, of producing in similar a proportions, not less
than 8,000,000 bushels, and of supporting 250 run of
buhrs!
Our lands are much diversified, affording ever}'
facility for farming that the husbandman can de-
sire. The eastern and northern parts are gener-
ally timbered with oak, maple, linden, ash etc., the
balance of the land is prairie, with groves of tim-
ber skirting the largest lakes. The surface is
gently undulating, and the soil is deep, rich, black
sandy, and loam.
The County is admirably watered by numerous
lakes and streams.
Wlteat Elevators in tbe County.
Prciprietor.
Locaiion
Power.
Capacity.
W. F David«on
Litchfield
Darwin,
Steanis
75,000
Ch;iuncv Butler
Horse
30,000
10 000
.T. M- Hnwfird
Horse
W. F. Davidson
12.000
u
Dassel
Swede Grove...
Steam
50,000
.50,000
n
Total capacity in Bu-ihels.
2J7,000
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTV
149
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HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
Area of IWeeker Ooiinty.
Town.
Acton
Collinwood
Cediir Mills....
Cosmos
Darwin
Danielson
Dassel
Ellsworth
Forest City...
Forest Prairie.
Greenleaf
Harvey
Kingston
Litchfield
Mananiiah
Swede Grove...
Union Grove.. .
Grand Total
Acres land.
19841.
19284.
23532.
22487.
205.'v2.
21970,
19692
18494.
2i9&e.
22777.
24306.
33047.
21511.
2.5361.
2215.5.
2i318.
86
01
S3
61
86
67
'si
50
31
84
84
40
82
92
18
,99
381583.45
3129.82
3758.37
676.61
542.35
2449.40
974.08
3275.66
4524.74
884 37
582 47
19.')8.23
464.08
13.36.99
2895.42
31.31
590.si6
706.26
Acres water. Total acre
2297 iTCs"
23042.38
24209.44
23029.96
23002.26
22049.7.5
22967.66
23019..55
22846.87
22806.78
24736.07
249.30.92
34:'89 39
24407.24
25393.23
22746.04
23025. '25
28781.02
410369.47
The Lakes vary in size from Washington lyake,
2435.52 acres, to the lakelet of 40 acres or less.
witii an area of
\. Lilst of County commissioner**, from tbe Orfiran
iZHtlon of the County.
1856— Ttios H Skinner, F N Rip-
ley and J Buy
1857— J T Kinnison, John Wigle
and J W Griswold
1858--J Wiirle, J T Kinnison and
T G Gould
1858-9— A P Whitney, John Wigle,
Mark Warren, Peter Ritchie,
Ziba Caswell and J V Bran-
ham, Sen
1859~Peter Ritchie, Mark Warren,
John Wigle, Chas Low, Robert
Lang and J W Dame
1860-B M Whitney, Mark Warreu
and liinu.s Howe
1861— J C Whitney. Peter Ritchie
and J V Branham Sen
186-2— Chas E Cutts EB Kingsley
E A Ch.ipin, E H Whitney, Jas
B Atkinson and Sam Taylor
1863— Geo. S SUoles Sen, H Hall and
Moody Caswell
1864— Geo S Sholes Sen H Hall,
Michael Johnson and F Mc-
1865-0--G S Sholes, Sen., H. Hall
and Ziba Caswell
1867.-1VIJ Flyun, HHall and Ziba
Caswell
1868-W H Dart, S Y Gordon and
A N Fosen
1869-Wm E Graham J B Atkin-
son A N Foseu
1870-J B Atkinson, W E Graham
and H Halverson
1871— J A C Waller, Evan Evanson,
H C Bull, Patrick Flyun and
N CHines
1872— Evan Evanson, N C Hines.
Patrick Flynn, H C Bull and
Cliauncy Butler
1873--C Butler, .\ C Bines, Evan
Evan.son, Patrick Flynn, and
Henry Clay
1875 -C Butler, Evan Evanson. H
Clay, B F Spaulding, and Jos
Hubbard
137.5— Kvan Evanson, H Halverson,
H Clay; Jo.s Hubbard aud B F
Spaulding
1876— Evan Evanson, H Halverson
Jos Hubbard, Louis Rudberg
and B F sp^'ulding.
HISTOKY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
151
On psifre 9 of this History, we gave the name of D M Hanson as one of
the first Connty Commissioners the recortl does not so show.
Herewith we give the names of the* other Coun-
ty Officers, viz :
AUDITORS.
1858-9 T H Skinner, Reg of Deed?
KX-oJflcio.
ISGO-landpart (.f62D P Delamatter
1862-3-4 Jas M Harvey.
1864 M W Piper, appointed. Res-
igned in 1805.
1865 Charles E
Resigned.
1865-6-7-8-9-70
Jun.
1871-2-3-4 John Blackwell
1875-6 Hamlet Stevens.
Cutts appointed'
Jesse VBrauham,
ATTOKWfEYS.
1858-9-60 Wm Richards.
1861-2 Mark Warren.
1863-4-,5-6 AC Smith.
1867 Thos S Brown resigned, Henry
Wilson appointed
1869 part of '70 Henry Hill.
1870 Chas B. Howell,
1871-2 F Belfoy,
1873-4 C H Strobeck,
1875-6 E A Campbell.
REGISTERS OF DEEDS.
1850 Milton G Moore.
1857-8-9 60 T H Skinner.
1861-2 TCJewett.
1863 T H Skinner till he died.
1863-4 Hamlet Stevens.
11865 EH Whitney.
11866 JasM Harvev.
11867-8-9-70 John Blackwell.
1871-2-3-4-5-6 N AViren
CliERKSOF COURT.
1860-1-2-3 J A Stanton.
1864-5-6 J M Harvey.
1867-8-9-70-71 John Blackwell.
1872:.3-4-5-6 S W Leavitt
JUDGES OF PRORATE.
18.57 H N Baker.
1869-70 John M Waldron.
1860-1-2.3 A C Smith.
1871-2 C B Howell.
1864 E H Whitney.
1873-4 F V DeCoster.
1865 JasM Harvey.
1875 John Blackwell, till he died.
1866-7 CB Jordan.
1875-6 S A Plumley.
1868 Henry Wilson.
SHERIFFS.
1856 Abijah Bemis.
l864-5-6-7Geo S Sholes Jr.
1857-8-9 T C Jewett.
1868-9A ASanford.
1860-1 ES Fitch.
1870-1-2-3 Wm M Campbell.
1862 John Wigle.
1874-5-6 N J March.
Part of 1862-3-4 J B Atkinson,
CHAPTER XIV
In conclusion ^(f what we promised on the 4th,
of July, 1876, we have but little to add.
As a primal history it has been a much more dif-
ficult job than we anticipated and yet we regret not
the labor. For the innumerable facts, names and
dates, we think our book is reliable and will prom-
ise a fund of material for the future historian, far
better qualified than ourself, for the task of putting
it together in readable shape — we have endeavored
to do no injustice to any one — we have had noth-
ing to refer to but our memory and an imperfect
diary of events as they passed, and. if we have suc-
ceeded in doing a good thing for Meeker County
we shall feel amply compensated for the time we
have spent.
Our printer boys have aspired to have the en-
(152)
HISTOKY OF MEEKER C ' XTV. 1 53
the job^doiie up at Litchfield — printing — l:)inding
and all, and if they can make anything out of it
we shall be })leased t«) have them.
If the punctuation is not in all cases strictly i i ac-
cordance with the "Merrill School Book Law" our
readers will bear in mind that the boys had a
double font of commas, semicolons, dashes capital
letters &c., and it was thought best to have the
thing punctuated a little too much, rather than not
enough— then again we never was a good proof
i-eader, and there are now and then typographical
errors, but none so bad b\it what the reader can
readily understand the sense — we know the good
people of Meeker County will criticise us lightly
for our faults, and feel kindly toward us for our
good intentions — and as for outside criticism we
care not a fig — they'll waste their inkfand paper —
if every county will get up as good a one as we
have done, what a noble fund will be in store for
the future historian!
We conclude this chapter with a brief recital of
the celebration at Litchfield, July, 4th 1S76 — the
close of the first century of our national existence.
A canopy was erected on block sixty-eight in
Litchfield, covering something over one acre of
ground, and it was occupied by something over
four thousand people.
154 HISTORY OF MEEKER COU-VTY.
OFFCERS OF THE DAY.
Hon. A. C. Smith, President. Vice Presidents:
W. W, Hobb, Acton; Isham Collins, Collin wood;
T. Pennoyer, Ellsworth; Geo. »S.. Sholes, Sen. For-
est City: J. K. Polk, Forest Praire; John Sampson,
Greenleaf; John Dougherty. Harvey; Caleb Hull,
Dassel; Isaac Wheeler, Cedar Mills; N.J. McDo)i-
ald. Cosmos; M. Henderson, Darwin; Charles
Hanson, Danielson; Orin Whitnev, Kingston; G.
B. Waller, Village of Litchfield; O. H. Ness, town
of Litchfield; Charles Maybee, Manannah; Hans.
Peterson, Swede Grove; Jos. Hubbard, Union
Grove. Chaplain, Rev.J. S. Sherrill; Orator, Hon.
Wm. L.Kelley of St. Paul; Reader of the Declar-
ation of Indipendence, Chas. H. Strobeck Esq,
Chief Marshall: Col. J. M. Howard; Assistants:
Capt. J. B. Atkinson, Capt. Per Ekstrom.
The procession was formed under the direction
of the Chi«f Marshall, in front of the Lake Ripley
House, at 10:30 A. M., marched up Marshall Av-
enue to 6th, street, thence to Sibley Avenue, thence
down Sibley Aveuue to Weisel St, thence to Hol-
comb Avenue, up Holcomb Aveuue to the bower.
ORDER OF PROCESSION.
1st. — Litchfield rifles preceeded by martial music.
2nd. — Fire Company.
3d. — Societies Represented.
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. icr
4th. — Gen. Sherman's Rag Muffins, preceded
bv the Litchlield Brass Band.
5th — County Officials; Officers ot the Day;
Reader Orator and Clergy.
6th. — Citizens generally preceded by Atwater
Band.
Opening prayer by the chaplains.
The Star Spangled Banner, preceded by a brief
historical sketch of this old patriotic =ong and of
the American flag, by the President of the day*.
Reading Declaration of Independence by
Charles H. Strobeck, Esq.
Hail Columbia, by Litchfield Brass Band.
Oration by Hon. Wm. L. Kelley.
Music by Atwater Band.
Grand Centennial salute, by the Litchfield Rifles.
Auld Lang Syne, full chorus — both bands-
Martial music and the entire Congregation stand-
ing.
Prayer and Benediction.
^•The first colors spoken of in connection with
the American revolution were significantly enough
called ''Union flags." No account is given of the
devices upon them. They are frequently spoken
of in the newspapers of 1774.
The Connecticut troops fixed upon their standard
and their drums in 1775 the latin motto in letters
156 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
of gold, literally, "God who transplanted hither,
will support us/' Each regiment was distin-
guished by its color — blue, orange, &c.
July iSth, 1776, Gen. Israel Putnam unfurled at
Cambridge, Massachusetts, on the joyous occas-
ion of the reception in that town of the Declara-
tion of Independence, a standard bearing this mot-
to on one side, "An appeal to Heaven," and on the
other "Qui Traxstatit Sustixet.'" The flag
was flung to the breeze amid the roar of cannon
and the shouts of the people.
In September, 1776, Col. Moultrie unfurled
a large blue flag displayed in South Carolina, and
was used at the taking of Fort Johnson, James
Island; the crescent in the emblem of sovereignty. '
A standard with a white ground, a pine tree in
the middle, and the motto "Appeal to Heaven,"
was adopted in i775 ^^ ^^^ ^"^S '^^ '^^ floating bat-
teries. .
On January 2nd, 1776. the day that gave birth to
the new American Armv, the flag desig-nated as
"The great Union Standard" was hoisted. This
was the basis of the National flag of the present
day.
In J 776, was adopted the standard to be used
by the Commander-in-Chief of the American
Navy, being a yellow field, with a hvelv repre-
sentation of a rattlesnake in the middle, in the atti-
tude of striking. Underneath were the words,
"Don't tread on me." This standard furnished
the basis of the rattle-snake flag of the rebels, of
Jeff. Davis' Confederacy, and has proved a dis-
grace to its paternity.
The same year the flag of the Batteries was
HISTORY OF MEEKER Ci)VSTY. 157
adopted by the cruisers of the Massachusetts col-
ony.
June 14th, J 777, Congress passed the following
resolution :
''Resolved, that the flag of the thirteen States
be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white, that
the Union be thirteen stars, white, in a blue field,
representing a new Constitution."
This resolution was made public Sept. 3d, 1777-
The first flag made in pursuance of it, was first
used at the surrender of Burgoyne, October, 7th
of that year.
The first change in the National colors was di-
rected in the following enactment of Congress,
approved Jan. 13, 1794,
•■Be it enacted, &c., That from and after the first
day of May. 1795 the flag of the United States
shall be fifteen stripes alternate red and white, and
the Union be fifteen stars white in a blue field."
This was the flag of the United States during
the warof 1812 and '14.
In 1818 it was again altered, and a return was
made to thirteen stripes, adding a star for each
State admitted, the star to be added on the 4th of
July following the admission of the new State —
the stripes thus ever representing the original thir-
teen States and the stars the present number of
States. The length ot the flag should be in pro-
portion to its width, less the width of one stripe,
or equal to the width of tw^enty-five stripes. The
dimensions would therefore be "twenty-five by thir-
teen, the blue or union square at the upper head
corner, is» of course equal in width to seven stripes,
(a white stripe coming next to it underneath) it
should in length equal ten, (or two-fifths of the
158 HISTORY OF MEEKER COUXTV.
flag,) the stars should be arranged in perpendicu-
lar rows.
The language of the American flag is as follows:
The stars represent the new constellation of States
rising in the West. The idea was taken from the
constellation Lyra, which in the hands of Orphe-
us signifies harmony. The blue in the field was
taken from the edges of the Covenanters banner
in Scotland, significant of the league covenant of
the United Colonies against oppression, involving
the virtue of vigilance, perseverence and justice.
The stars formerly in a circle, symbolizing the pur-
petuity of the Union, the ring like the circling ser-
pent of the Egyptians, signifying eternity. The
thirteen stripes showed, with the stars the number
of United Colonies, and denoted the subordination
of the States of the Union, as well as equality
among themselves.
The whole was the blending of the various flags,
previous to the Union flag. The red flag of the
armies, and the white of floating batteries. The
red color, which, in the Roman day, was the signal
of defiance, denotes daring, the blue, fidelity, and
the white purity.
The flag planted by General Scott on the Na-
tional Palace in the city of Mexico, had thirty stars
m the Union,
On July 4th, 1876 the National Banner throws
37 stars to the breeze, and is known as the Con-
stellation OF Liberty, It is for you young
men of the rising generation, and those who come
after us to see to it that there are no falling stars
from this Constellation.
And now a word as to the song —
HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY. I59
THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER.
If the Freach hymn of Liberty, the Marseillaise,
was composed under exciting circumstances the
Star Spangled Banner was inspired by events no
less patriotic by our distmguished countryman, Mr.
Francis S. Key, an able and eloquent lawyer an ac-
complished gentleman, a man of noble and gener-
ous impulses. During the war with the British in
1814, Mr. Key was residing in Baltimore, and
hearing of the detention of a dear and intimate
friend he started to obtain his release. He went
as far as the mouth of the Patapsco river, which
enters the Chesapeake Bay, and is about eighty-five
miles north of the Potomac river. Here he was
arrested and carried on board a British man of
war belonging to the British fleet stationed oppo-
site FortMcHenry, the bombardment of which he
was compelled to witness. The English admiral
boasted before Mr. Key that he would take the
Fort in a few hours, and the city of Baltimore
within the two succeedmg days. The bombaid-
ment continued the whole day and the following
night, without making an impression either on the
strength of the works or the spirit of the garrison.
Our patriotic countryman stood on the deck
watching through the smoke which sometimes ob-
scured it, the banner of freedom waving from the
fort. At length night came, and he could see it no
more. Still he watched until at length dawn be-
gan to bring objijscts around into distinctness. With
beating heart he turned toward the Fort, and there
waving m the morning breeze, high and uninjured,
was the banner, with its stars and stripes, the ban-
ner of freedom and independence, then in its ear-
ly days, It was at this moment of joy and tri-
l6o HISTORY OF MEEKER COUNTY.
umph' that Francis Scott Key, under the influence
of patriotic excitement composed the Star
Spangled Banner. After Mr. Key had been hber-
ated, and the British had retired from Fort Mc-
Ilen'ry, without attempting the attack on the city
of Baltimore, he completed his patriotic hymn,
which was enthusiastically received then, and has
ever since been considered as one of the national
songs of our country.
E N D.
ERRATUM.
In compiling the names of the County Officers,
the Senators, Representatives and Treasurers were
madviertantly omitted. Wc give them here :
iTlEiniirKS OF THF, r^KGlSI^ATURE.
From the Seaatarial and ReprP!<entativ>e Dixfn'ct, of which
Merker fhmiUi Formril a P.irt:
SK\ A TOKS.
1857-S R. M. Richardson
18=^9-60 — C. C. Andrews
1861 — Sam. Bennett.
1862 — Sam. Bennett.
1863 — Chas. A. Warner.
1864 — Chas. A. Warner.
1865— G. D. George.
1866 — G. D. George.
1867 — II. L. Gordon.
1S68— H. L. Gordon,
1869 — Dana E. King.
1870 — Dana E. King.
1871— W. T. Bonni'well
1872 — Charles E. Cutts.
1873 — Charles E. Cutts.
1874— Charles E. Cutts.
1875 — Andrew Nelson.
1876 — Andrew Nelson.
K E P R E S E N r .\ T I V E S.
18^9.
1861-
1862-
1863-
1 86.4-
1865-
1866-
1S67-
- 868-
1869-
.S70-
1S71-
[S72-
1874-
1S75-
1876-
8 — J. B. Atkinson.
6c^U. S. W^illie.
— V. V. Kennedy.
— V. P. Kennedy.
-C.F.Davis.
-Henry Hill.
-Henry Hill.
— D:ina E. King.
—Dana E. Kingr.
-J. B. Salisbury.
-D. Pile.
-B. Abbott.
— W. II. Greenleaf.
— W; H- Greenleaf.
— W. H. Greenleaf
—Andrew Nelson.
—Louis Rudberg.
-N C. Hines,
T»tl
ASI'KI
'.tl'^.
1858
J A SiMlllt)!!
"
l-^/i)
Hehi-y Hili.
'
1809
ChiisECnIfc.
1871
Henry Hill.
1860
W H Groeiileal'.
1872
H Stevens.
1861
W H Groeiile^.f.
1873
H Stevens.
1862
Geo C Wliit.-omh.
Ri'signed.
1874
A N Fosen.
1S63
A C Smitli nppoint
e.l.
1875
\ N Fosen.
1864-
.'■..6-7.8.9 J V Bran
)i:itn.
Ren.
H7t'>
A V Fr>-en.
X- c
(
1
DEC 2 4 1931
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